Third International Conference on Literary Geographies

Vic, 8 and 9 October 2020

Universitat de Vic – Universitat Central de Catalunya

Due to the measures taken to contain the Coronavirus outbreak, the Organizing Committee has decided to postpone it until October 2020. We apologize for any inconvenience this delay may cause.

 

Studies in Literary Geography have been taking firm shape over these past years, making strong connections with numerous other fields of study. Anthropology, landscape studies, cultural studies, and education, to name a few, have sprung new relations with literary texts linked with place. Seeking responses to this challenge, the Third International Conference on Literary Geographies, to be held on 16, 17 and 18 April 2020 at Universitat de Vic – Universitat Central de Catalunya, will approach Literary Geography from three interrelated perspectives: first, theoretical reflection; second, thematically related links between texts and places; and finally, experiential application in education and literary tourism.

Theoretical reflection must lay the foundations for advancing both research and the mapping out of educational literary routes. It calls for rigorous examination of workable approaches to Literary Geography, ranging from technical aspects such as publisher guidelines and text adaptation, to broader considerations including what measures are to serve in molding a canon, philological or educational, for Literary Geography. Needed discussion along these lines will address the question of why some texts and not others, despite tendencies in cultural studies toward shunning or displacing the canon.

Thematically oriented research examines cross-curricular topics arising in relations between literary texts and places with a view to delving deeper into areas of inquiry and garnering research on various periods and authors. Expanding thematic range also establishes points of contact with further cultural areas such as music, art, gastronomy and others. Results from thematically oriented research provides excellent raw materials for setting out itineraries, maps, and literary routes.

The third perspective opens the way to bringing together experiences and good practices in itineraries and literary routes, whether in education or in literary tourism, and focusing either on literature or on other aspects of culture.

Furthermore, this Third International Conference on Literary Geographies provides a meeting place for students, teachers, and researchers interested in the educational application of literary routes, and incorporates the Seventh Colloquium on Literature, Territory and Education of the Literary Geographies Project 3.0 (2019-2020), Universitat de València, which also includes teachers at Universitat d’Alacant, Universitat de Barcelona, Universitat de Vic – Universitat Central de Catalunya, Universitat de les Illes Balears, Universitat Rovira i Virgili, and Florida Universitària.

Background

In April 2012 the Group for Innovation in Teaching “Literary Geographies,” Universitat de València, organized the First Conference on Literary Geographies, whose aim was to bring together reflections and experiences linking literature and heritage, and to analyze the pedagogical possibilities resulting from their coupling. In 2014 it was Universitat de Vic – Universitat Central de Catalunya that took the next step and organized the Second International Conference on Literary Geographies with a special focus on potentializing communication between literary and cultural heritage and territory.

The work carried out by these groups and their gathered experiences produced two publications: Un amor, uns carrers: cap a una didàctica de les geografies literàries, edited by Alexandre Bataller and Héctor H. Gassó (Universitat de València, 2014; index available here); and Per vells carrers de poble, edited by Jordi Chumillas Coromina and Ricard Giramé Parareda (Servei de Publicacions UVic–UCC, 2014; available here).

This third edition of the International Conference is set for 2020 with the aim of bringing together once again specialists interested in the study of Literary Geography, organized by the research group TEXLICO (UVic–UCC) in collaboration with the Verdaguer Chair for Literary Studies (UVic–UCC) and the Literary Geographies Project 3.0 (2019-2020) (Universitat de València).

 

Download the SECOND Call, February 2020: Temporarily not available

The Conference Organizing Committee will publish the definitive program by 2 april 2020.

Download the First Call, July 2019: FIRST CALL July 2019