Beyond Autoethnography:

Writing Race and Ethnicity in Canada
April 28-30, 2005 Wilfrid Laurier University, Waterloo, ON

Recent works by ethnic, multicultural and minority writers in Canada have become more diverse and experimental in style, subject matter, and genre. No longer are ethnic and minority authors identifying simply with their ethnic and racial groups in opposition to dominant culture. Many authors consciously attempt to question or problematize the link between ethnic identity and literary production, while still recognizing the racialized context in which they write. This two-day conference brings together scholars, students, and artists in order to explore ways in which representations of race and ethnicity have changed in Canada. How has globalization, rapid shifts in technology and communication, cross cultural and intra-community networks, racial and cultural hybridization affected or challenged representations of the Other in contemporary novels, plays, poems, and films? In what ways have recent cultural productions moved beyond the politics of identity, beyond what Françoise Lionnet has termed "autoethnography," or ethnographic autobiography? We invite papers that examine such issues as race and writing, gender, sexuality, resistance, nationhood, and otherness in Canadian literature and culture.

Please send a 500 word proposal and a one-page cv by August 1, 2004 to one of the organizers:

Eleanor Ty or Christl Verduyn
Department of English and Film Studies or Canadian Studies
Wilfrid Laurier University
Waterloo, ON N2L 3C5
ety@wlu.ca or cverduyn@wlu.ca

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*Note: This site will be updated periodically. Please check back after October 2004 for more details.

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