Delta Blues Symposium XV: Celebrating a Century of Delta Culture announces call for papers, participation

Nov. 24, 2008 -- The Department of English and Philosophy at Arkansas State University-Jonesboro announces its fifteenth annual Delta Blues Symposium, to be held Thursday-Saturday, 2-4 April, 2009. The theme for Delta Blues Symposium XV is the celebration of Delta culture for the past 100 years. Members of the public, as well as those in academia, have highlighted cultural influences shaping the Lower Mississippi River Delta, and those cultural influences embrace a wide range of expressive forms. Underscoring such an interdisciplinary approach, the symposium committee encourages proposals from scholars and students of the humanities and social sciences–especially anthropology, art history, economics, folklore studies, geography, history, literature, musicology, political science, and sociology. As well, the symposium committee seeks contributions from scholars and students of the physical and natural sciences.

In keeping with past symposia, proposals are welcomed for papers and panels that deal with any and all aspects of the seven-state Mississippi River Delta region or with the blues, perhaps the region’s most famous export. Of particular interest are presentations on artists who have appeared at previous symposia (fiction writers such as Lewis Nordan, Ellen Douglas, Scott Ely, Tom Piazza, and Beverly Lowry; poets like Natasha Trethewey, Yusef Komunyakaa, Jo McDougall, and Michael Harper; visual artists, including James Fraher, David Rae Morris, and Maude Schuyler Clay; and such musicians as Alvin Youngblood Hart, Kenny Neal, Little Milton, Billy Lee Riley, and James "Super Chikan" Johnson.

Program proposals may be for individual presentations or for panels. These should be sent as 100-word abstracts. Participation by creative writers and other artists is also encouraged. Please send samples of previous work for consideration. The submission deadline is December 15, 2008. The registration fee of $25, which covers symposium expenses and brings a one-year subscription to Arkansas Review, will be collected after proposals have been accepted. Note that this fee is waived for currently enrolled students.

Proposals may be sent via post, e-mail, or fax to the following address:
Delta Symposium Committee
Department of English and Philosophy
P. O. Box 1890
Arkansas State University
State University, AR 72467
delta@astate.edu
Phone: 870-972-3043
Fax: 870-972-3045

Further information can be had by contacting the Delta Symposium Committee or by checking the Symposium website: www.clt.astate.edu/blues.
 

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