Events
The Caledonian Trans Reveal: Scottish Gender Novels in the Literature of Devolution
Events
The Caledonian Trans Reveal: Scottish Gender Novels in the Literature of Devolution
An event celebrating writer and performer Harry Josephine Giles' forthcoming chapter in the Routledge Companion of Scottish Literature. Giles's chapter focuses on the recurrence of transgender figures across genres in late-twentieth century Scottish literature, from Iain Banks' The Wasp Factory (1984) to Ali Smith's Girl Meets Boy (2007), asking how these literary representations of trans identity at once reveal Scottish national anxieties and obscure trans subjectivity, writing possible futures for a Scottish nation over trans stories. A panel of speakers will respond to Giles' work, followed by roundtable discussion.With the support of the Royal Society of Edinburgh.
An event celebrating writer and performer Harry Josephine Giles' forthcoming chapter in the Routledge Companion of Scottish Literature. Giles's chapter focuses on the recurrence of transgender figures across genres in late-twentieth century Scottish literature, from Iain Banks' The Wasp Factory (1984) to Ali Smith's Girl Meets Boy (2007), asking how these literary representations of trans identity at once reveal Scottish national anxieties and obscure trans subjectivity, writing possible futures for a Scottish nation over trans stories. A panel of speakers will respond to Giles' work, followed by roundtable discussion.
With the support of the Royal Society of Edinburgh.
Conference Panel Announcement: Imagining a Future (Inside/Outside) Britain
12 and 13 March 2026, UNIVERSITÉ TOULOUSE - JEAN JAURÈSOrganised jointly by the Centre de Recherches en Civilisation Britannique (CRECIB),the Société Française d’Etudes Ecossaises (SFEE)and the Centre for Anglophone Studies (CAS, UR 801)UNIVERSITÉ TOULOUSE - JEAN JAURÈSMaison de la Recherche
Organising committee:Nathalie Duclos, nathalie.duclos@univ-tlse2.fr [ScotLitCult member]Anita Jorge, anita.jorge@univ-tlse2.frMyriam Yakoubi, myriam.yakoubi@univ-tlse2.fr
How has the future of the United Kingdom and its various components been imagined, conceived and projected at all periods, including the present day? Drawing on the interdisciplinary field of futures studies, and more specifically critical futures studies, this conference, supported by two scientific societies, the SFEE and the CRECIB, and by the Centre for Anglophone Studies (CAS) of Toulouse-Jean Jaurès University, proposes to study the ways in which the future of the United Kingdom and its constituent nations has been imagined over time, in fictional and non-fictional modes. We will be looking at both representations of the future of the United Kingdom as a whole (the future of the British State, society and Union), and representations of the future of the various constituent territories of the United Kingdom, either within the Union and the Empire or outside of it.
the Société Française d’Etudes Ecossaises (SFEE)
and the Centre for Anglophone Studies (CAS, UR 801)
UNIVERSITÉ TOULOUSE - JEAN JAURÈS
Maison de la Recherche
Organising committee:
Nathalie Duclos, nathalie.duclos@univ-tlse2.fr [ScotLitCult member]
Anita Jorge, anita.jorge@univ-tlse2.fr
Myriam Yakoubi, myriam.yakoubi@univ-tlse2.fr
How has the future of the United Kingdom and its various components been imagined, conceived and projected at all periods, including the present day? Drawing on the interdisciplinary field of futures studies, and more specifically critical futures studies, this conference, supported by two scientific societies, the SFEE and the CRECIB, and by the Centre for Anglophone Studies (CAS) of Toulouse-Jean Jaurès University, proposes to study the ways in which the future of the United Kingdom and its constituent nations has been imagined over time, in fictional and non-fictional modes. We will be looking at both representations of the future of the United Kingdom as a whole (the future of the British State, society and Union), and representations of the future of the various constituent territories of the United Kingdom, either within the Union and the Empire or outside of it.
Panel 1: Futurescapes of Scotland. Inside, Outside, and Beyond
Chairs: Julia Boll/Nina Engelhardt
Julia Boll (University of Salzburg, Austria) - Alternative Futures: How Willa Muir Explores Potentialities with John Donne
Nina Engelhardt (University of Stuttgart, Germany) - Between National and Archipelagic Visions of the Future: Douglas Stuart’s Young Mungo (2022)
Wolfgang Funk (Johannes Gutenberg University, Mainz, Germany) - Eau Caledonia: Re-Imagining Scottish Myths with Ali Smith
Nora A. Plesske (University of Magdeburg, Germany) - “Building a New Scotland”: Cultural Regeneration in Scotland’s Post-Industrial Cities
More information can be found here.
Chairs: Julia Boll/Nina Engelhardt
Julia Boll (University of Salzburg, Austria) - Alternative Futures: How Willa Muir Explores Potentialities with John Donne
Nina Engelhardt (University of Stuttgart, Germany) - Between National and Archipelagic Visions of the Future: Douglas Stuart’s Young Mungo (2022)
Wolfgang Funk (Johannes Gutenberg University, Mainz, Germany) - Eau Caledonia: Re-Imagining Scottish Myths with Ali Smith
Nora A. Plesske (University of Magdeburg, Germany) - “Building a New Scotland”: Cultural Regeneration in Scotland’s Post-Industrial Cities
Scottish Literature & Culture Teaching Workshop
On Friday, 31st January 2025, the Scottish Literature and Culture Network invites you to an online workshop focused on mutual exchange, offering practical insights and strategies for teaching Scottish literature and culture. Our aim is to create an open, informal, and collaborative environment where participants can share their experiences, discuss challenges, and explore creative methods. By drawing directly from participants' own seminar practices, we hope to generate practical solutions and develop ideas. The workshop will address difficulties such as challenges related to language barriers, varying levels of students' prior knowledge, and limited access to both primary and secondary material. We will also host guest speakers to discuss integrating museum and archive collections into research-led teaching, focusing on heritage interpretation, storytelling, material cultures, and Scotland's role in Britain's imperial project. More information [here].
Anglistiktag 2024 (Augsburg, 15-18 September 2024), Sektion: Scottish Futurities
In this section, we seek to explore the diverse expressions of futurities in the Scottish context, from medieval and early modern imaginations of the future to reimaginings of past possibilities, and to opportunities and constraints on futurity within the present moment, particularly amidst current crises. With an inclusive definition of Scottishness as by birth, residence, or choice and encompassing the Scottish diaspora, we invite approaches from fields such as literature, theatre, cultural studies, visual arts, performance, spoken word events and oral storytelling, music, history, and beyond. We welcome papers that explore a wide range of topics related to Scottish futurities. More information can be found here.
In this section, we seek to explore the diverse expressions of futurities in the Scottish context, from medieval and early modern imaginations of the future to reimaginings of past possibilities, and to opportunities and constraints on futurity within the present moment, particularly amidst current crises. With an inclusive definition of Scottishness as by birth, residence, or choice and encompassing the Scottish diaspora, we invite approaches from fields such as literature, theatre, cultural studies, visual arts, performance, spoken word events and oral storytelling, music, history, and beyond. We welcome papers that explore a wide range of topics related to Scottish futurities. More information can be found here.
Launch, Burns Day (25 January) 2024, online
The official launch of the "Scottish Literature and Culture Network“ (ScotLitCult) takes place on Burns Day, 25th January 2024, as an online event.