Department of English Language and Literature,

Cairo University

Call for Papers

The Ninth International Symposium on Comparative Literature

Theme:

Egypt at the Crossroads: Literary and Linguistic Studies

Because of its geographical, historical, and cultural placement, Egypt has been—since time immemorial—both literally and metaphorically at the crossroads. Enjoying the strategic location that it does—at a meeting point between Africa and Asia, facilitating contact between the two continents and Europe, and at a juncture between the Mediterranean and the Red Sea—Egypt is a rich amalgam of diverse cultural heritages: Ancient Egyptian, Greek, Roman, Persian, Coptic, Islamic. Influenced by all these and, in modern times, the French and British, the inhabitants are in the happy position of being hybrid—African, Arab, Mediterranean—but indubitably and inimitably Egyptian. It is, perhaps, this unique situation that inspired the renowned Egyptian geographer Gamal Hamdan (1928-1993) to write of Egypt as having a “natural gift” which may explain “the secret of Egypt’s survival and vitality through the ages and in spite of the ages.”

 Contributors to the Symposium are invited to explore the various aspects and paradoxes of Egypt through literature and language, making use of, though by no means restricted to, the following suggested topics:

• Egypt in World Literature (African/Arab/Mediterranean)

• Egyptian Texts and Non-Egyptian Cultures

• The Presentness of the Past in Literature and Language

• Egyptian Literature in Translation

• Travel Literature

• Revisiting the Canon in Literary and Linguistic Studies

• New Forms in Literary and Linguistic Studies

• Prison Literature

• Orientalism: Past and Present

• The Representation of Old Age in Literature and Language

• Young Adults in Literary and Linguistic Discourses

• The Quest for Identity

• Discourse Types

Presentations may be in one of the following forms: papers (20 minutes), workshops (45 or 90 minutes), and poster sessions.

Guidelines for submissions:

• Deadline for abstracts: March 15, 2008

• The languages of the Symposium are English and Arabic.

• Replies will be posted by April 30, 2008.

• Fees: Registration and Proceedings + cultural events: USD 300 for guests; LE 200 for Egyptian participants; LE 50 for attending only; free admission for students.

Please complete the form below and send it to the following address: cairosymposium2008@yahoo.com

The Ninth International Symposium on Comparative Literature

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