COGNITION AND LITERARY INTERPRETATION IN PRACTICE
University of Helsinki, Finland
27-29 August 2004
Plenary speakers:
Professor Jørgen Dines Johansen (University of Southern Denmark)
Professor David S. Miall (University of Alberta)
CALL FOR PAPERS
Cognitive studies have become one of the leading areas of research during
the past twenty years in the humanities as well as in the life sciences. In
literary studies, the interest in cognitive aspects has spurred research on
topics ranging from metaphor to narration and to the experience of reading,
thus opening up new areas of inquiry, such as mental mapping, blending and
embodiment. At the beginning of the 21st century, cognitive studies have
also provided wide-spread and innovative approaches to the study of
literature in literary studies per se, philosophical aesthetics and
empirical aesthetics as well as in semiotics and hermeneutics. Yet it is not
clear what cognitive studies have to offer to the practice of literary
interpretation, and this is the focus of the conference. We invite scholars
to reflect on this issue along at least three lines:
(1) We should ask ourselves what a cognitively based analysis can offer
literary studies. In theory at least, cognitive studies provide means for
describing structural aspects in literary interpretation, but they have been
criticized for neglecting historical, institutional and ideological aspects.
What is more, cognitive approaches still have to face the challenges
inherent in the complexity, ambiguity and heterogeneity of individual
literary works and their interpretation.
(2) The conference will also address how the models, methods and notions of
cognitive studies can be applied to critical and scholarly interpretation.
What insights into literary works do notions like schema, script and mapping
provide and how do they – or any other cognitive tools – help the
interpreter to organize, develop and/or express his or her understanding?
(3) In order for literary scholars to make full use of cognitive studies,
any cognitive aspects should be viewed in relation to the history of
literature and literary theory. Twentieth-century literary theories, such as
Russian formalism, French structuralism, phenomenology and even new
criticism (I. A. Richards) in many ways anticipated cognitive studies of
literature. The differences, similarities and parallelisms between cognitive
analysis and the other fields of literary-theoretical inquiry should now be
explored. Where exactly does the novelty in cognitive studies of literature
lie? What can we do in literary interpretation by applying cognitive studies
that we could not do by using other methodologies? And can literary studies,
perhaps by providing a historical understanding, broaden the scope of
cognitive studies?
The conference will consist of keynote lectures as well as of thematically
organized sessions of individual papers. We invite all scholars interested
in the topic to submit an abstract of no more than 300 words by e-mail in
word- or rtf-format to Dr. Harri Veivo, the chairman of the organizing
committee of the conference, for evaluation before 30 October, 2003.
Dr Harri Veivo
Chairman of the organizing committee of the conference
Postdoctoral fellow at the Finnish Graduate School of Literary Studies
University of Helsinki
e-mail harri.veivo@helsinki.fi
Professor Bo Pettersson
Director of the Finnish Graduate School of Literary Studies
Department of English
University of Helsinki
Ms. Merja Polvinen, M.A.
Coordinator of the Finnish Graduate School of Literary Studies
Department of English
University of Helsinki
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Full Information at
http://www.english.upenn.edu/CFP/
or write Erika Lin: elin@english.upenn.edu
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