SSASAA Symposium 2008
Transnationalism and Immigration Shock in American Society and Literature
October 30 - November 2, 2008
Speakers
Ron Clifton, Adjunct Professor of American Studies, Stetson University, Deland, Florida
Emory Elliott (co-chair), University Professor of the University of California and
Distinguished Professor of English, University of California Riverside
Rob Kroes, Professor of American Studies, University of Utrecht, Netherlands
Paul Lauter (co-chair), Professor of Literature, Trinity College, Hartford, Connecticut
Deborah Madsen, Professor of American Literature and Culture, University of Geneva
Ana Maria Manzanas, Associate Professor of American Literature, University of Salamanca, Spain
The 2008 SSASAA symposium is open to all Salzburg Global Seminar alumni interested in American Studies, as well as non-alumni working in a field related to the topic. The symposium will consist of presentations, plenary discussions, and theme-based working groups, led by distinguished American Studies scholars. Additional events include a barbeque, receptions, and a concert and gala dinner on the final evening.
Symposium description
Since the late 1960s, social, political, and technological changes throughout the world have accelerated the cultural diversity and synergism of many nations. People, forms of cultural expression, as well as capital have crossed or altered former national borders. Millions of people from Latin America, Asia, the Middle East, and Africa have migrated to the United States, as well as to Europe, and even to developing countries like India, South Korea, and Brazil. These movements have resulted in remarkable social, political, and cultural transformations both for the new arrivals and for the communities and regions in which they have settled. New immigrants bring with them foods, styles of dress, religious practices, forms of art and expression, and perspectives on all aspects of human experience that daily transform the cultural fabric of their communities and of host countries like the United States. The hybrid cultures thus produced express and often allay social tensions; it is almost a journalistic commonplace now to say that such forms of popular culture function as catalysts for social cohesion. But there are also many sources of conflict present in the clash of cultural forms, not only between those communities and their new neighbors—the “immigration shock” of our title—but also between generations within the immigrant communities. Much more needs to be understood about the social origins, the characteristics, and the impacts of such cultural production—and the extent to which the critical paradigms it is generating are replacing or altering those of the multiculturalism familiar to us for the last half century. Our discussion will include attention to the way literature functions as an agent of social dynamics related to immigration, the way it acts as a mirror for social change, and how it functions as an active player in the processes of change. Given the fact that issues related to immigration are figuring prominently in the up-coming presidential election, we will look at the ways in which Americans are reacting to the major current political and social tensions surrounding this discussion. The purpose of the symposium on transnationalism and immigration shock is to examine many aspects of the changes in the society and cultures of the United States that have resulted from these often radical, always unsettling changes.
Payment information: The fee for the symposium is € 500 for a single and € 800 for a double room. If the total payment is made by April 15, 2008, the fee is € 480 for a single and € 770 for a double. The fee includes accommodation and meals for three nights, tuition and fees and social events, but does not include travel expenses.
Limited financial aid is available for partial scholarships to help cover the symposium fee. The reasons for this need should be stated at the time of registration.
Bank Transfer: IBAN: AT 401953000100180942; Bankhaus Carl Spängler & Co., Salzburg,
BIC (Bank Code) SPAEAT2S, Austria
Credit cards are accepted (payment in Euro only)
In order to reserve a space, a completed registration form and a 100 Euro deposit (refundable until September 1, 2008) is required.
Space is limited and reservations will be confirmed in the order in which they are received. For further information about the SSASAA symposium, contact SSASAA Symposium Director Ms. Marty Gecek, mgecek@SalzburgGlobal.org
Please click here for the registration form.
