(Un)Radical Texts: Politics in the Novel
Northeast Modern Language Association
Hartford, Connecticut
March 30-31, 2001
What kind of political discourse can one find in a novel? The novel has
often been theorized as a component of the social text, at times in sweeping
fashion; Abraham Lincoln’s pronouncement to Harriet Beecher Stowe that she
was “the little lady who made this big war,” which clearly attributes
tremendous social agency to _Uncle Tom’s Cabin_, may at first appear to be
only political hyperbole, but perhaps his statement offers some indication
as to the potential cultural weight often ascribed to fiction. The nature
of this cultural capital varies: some novels tend to operate as radical
voices, while others support dominant ideologies.
This session will examine the tension between the novel as radical voice and
the novel as discourse of social hegemony. I welcome papers suitable for 20
minute presentations on any aspect of this topic; a paper might theorize the
genre, or explore the cultural weight of particular texts. Ideally, the
session will bring together scholars from different fields and allow for a
comparative approach to this issue.
Please send 300 word abstracts to:
Electronic submissions are strongly encouraged, but snail mail is available:
Jeff Miller
Department of English
University of Cincinnati
PO Box 210069
Cincinnati, OH 45221-0069
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