Deadline: 15 January 2011
Call for Papers for the National Black Writers Conference Biannual Symposium honoring the life and work of Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright August Wilson. Wilson was a major contributor to the canon of American literature with works that range from Jitney to Joe Turner’s Come and Gone to Radio Golf. His legacy consists of a cycle of 10 powerful plays that depict the African-American experience in the 20th century, each set in a different decade.
The symposium, dedicated to the exploration of “emerging themes, trends and issues in Black American literature,” will be held on Saturday, March 26, 2011 from 10 am to 5 pm in Founders Auditorium at Medgar Evers College, CUNY. Hosted by the Center for Black Literature, the event attracts writers, scholars, editors, agents, faculty, students and literary fans at large. The Center is inviting proposals in one of the following areas:
(1) The impact of the historical and cultural themes in August Wilson’s works on the African-American experience.
(2) The literary parallels between the work of August Wilson and the work of Black writers in the Harlem Renaissance or the Black Arts Movement.
(3) The impact of the work of August Wilson on the American literary canon.
All contributors are welcome. Interested faculty, independent researchers, and students should forward a one to two- page proposal with literature references by January 15, 2011 to writers@mec.cuny.edu. Notification of acceptance will be sent to presenters by February 15, 2011.
Dr. Brenda M. Greene
The Center for Black Literature at Medgar Evers College, CUNY
1650 Bedford Avenue, Brooklyn, New York 11225
718.804.8883
The Center for Black Literature Biannual Symposium
Honoring the Work and Life of Award-Winning Playwright August Wilson
Panels & Presentations
Saturday, March 26, 2011, 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
The Center for Black Literature
1650 Bedford Avenue
Brooklyn, NY 11225
Phone: 718-804-8883
E-mail: writers@mec.cuny.edu