International Conference: “Queer Journeys in North American Literature and Culture”

Mar 19, 2025

Description: This two-day conference will consider the diverse ways in which journeys undertaken by queer people have been represented in North American literature and culture, as well as how queer journeys interact with and impact social structures, transnational relations, and cultural forms. LGBTQ+ people in North America and beyond continue to experience forms of mobility characterized by complex and often fraught economic, cultural, and affective dynamics. Queer journeys may contain forms of movement that are voluntary or involuntary, joyful or exploitative, expansive or inhibiting, normative or deviant. This conference will consider such queer mobilities through an interdisciplinary lens that includes literary and cultural studies, media studies, gender and queer studies, history, and the social sciences.

We welcome papers that analyze queer journeys in and across a range of media (including literature, film, television, performance, video games, and other digital media). Within this intermedial and interdisciplinary context, we are also interested in discussing how queer journeys may challenge the dominant forms and conventions for narrating movement. We particularly invite interested participants to approach the subject from intersectional and transnational perspectives.

Submission guidelines: Please send proposals for individual presentations (250 words) or panel presentations of 3-4 participants (c. 600 words) to: qu***************@ui**.at. For full details and suggested topics, see the attached CfP or visit our conference website for more information. We look forward to receiving your submissions!

Submission deadlines:  Friday, May 16th 2025

Institution: Department of American Studies, University of Innsbruck

For more information, click here.