Delta Blues Symposium XII: Delta Diversity

 

            The Department of English and Philosophy at Arkansas State University (Jonesboro campus) announces its twelfth annual Delta Blues Symposium, to be held 30 March-1 April 2006. The theme for Delta Blues Symposium XII is “Delta Diversity.” Presentations are encouraged 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. This year’s theme also encourages presentations from the natural and physical sciences which examine how the seven-state Mississippi River Delta provides a varied physical and cultural environment for a range of cultural responses from diverse groups defined by ethnicity, class, religion, gender, and other factors.

 

            It should be emphasized that though we especially encourage presentations dealing with “Delta Diversity,” we welcome proposals for papers and panels which deal with any and all aspects of the region or with the blues, perhaps the region’s most famous export. We particularly invite presentations on artists who have appeared at previous symposia (fiction writers such as Lewis Nordan, Ellen Douglas, John Dufresne, Barry Hannah, and Beverly Lowry; poets like Yusef Komunyakaa, Michael Harper, and Al Young; visual artists, including James Fraher, David Rae Morris, and Maude Schuyler Clay; and musicians such as Frank Frost, Little Milton, CeDell Davis, and Billy Lee Riley).

 

            Program proposals may be for individual presentations or for panels. These should be

sent as 100-word abstracts. We also urge participation by creative writers and other artists. Please send samples of previous work for our consideration. The submission deadline is 13 January 2006. The registration fee of $25.00, 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

                                    PO Box 1890  

                                    Arkansas State University

                                    State University, AR 7246

                                    blues@astate.edu
Phone: 870-972-3043
Fax: 870-972-3045.

 

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