Margaret Cavendish on Literature

Conference theme

Scholars to date have examined in detail the scientific, philosophical, and ethico-political views expressed in Cavendish’s literature. But there has so far been little sustained or detailed study of her views about literature—about what it is and what it should be. This interdisciplinary conference will explore Cavendish’s philosophy of literature and how it informs her own literary practice and criticism.

Registration

The conference is free to attend, but space is limited. To register, email Lisa White ([email protected]) with your name and affiliation and with ‘Cavendish conference registration’ as the subject line.

Invited papers

·       Julia Borcherding (University of Cambridge), “‘Reasoning With Ourselves’: Cavendish on Dialogical Poetry’

·       David Cunning (University of Iowa), “‘Ever the two shall meet?’ Cavendish on Literature and Philosophy”

·       Lara Dodds (Mississippi State University), “Building Worlds with Margaret Cavendish”

·       Jessie Hock (Vanderbilt University), “For Fancy goeth not so much by Rule, & Method, as by Choice”

·       Susan James (Birkbeck, Emeritus), “Margaret Cavendish on Natural Philosophy and Poetry”

·       Anna M. Thell (National University of Singapore), “‘Living in Pleasure and Delight’: Cavendish’s Aesthetic View of Life’

·       Lisa Walters (University of Queensland), “Nonsense, No-places, and Violent Imaginations: Utopia and Authorial Selfhood in Cavendish’s The Blazing World”

·       Daniel Whiting (University of Southampton), “Is Cavendish an Aesthetician?”

Submitted papers

·       Robin Elizabeth Haas (Rutgers University), ‘To Those that do delight in Scenes and wit’: Literary Pleasures and (Trans)formational Delights in Margaret Cavendish’s The Blazing World and The Convent of Pleasure”

·       Milena Louise Liers (Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, University of Paris Nanterre), “The Concept of Contemplation: Philosophy and Literature in Margaret Cavendish's Writings”

·       Charlotte Newcombe (University of York), “The Rhythm of Margaret Cavendish's Poems and Fancies (1653)”

·       Enrico Piergiacomi (Technion University of Haifa), “Cavendish and Hutchinson on the Legitimacy of Scientific Poetry: Theory, Organicism, Beauty”

·       Maria Giulia Sestito (Padua University), “Writing through Nature: Philosophical Genres and Authorship in Margaret Cavendish”

·       Michaela Iman Tiller (Saint Michael's College), “Cavendish & Crossdressing: On the Performance and Embodiment of Gender in English Drama”

Funding

The conference is in association with the AHRC-funded project, Sympathy in Harmony: Margaret Cavendish’s Philosophy of Value (AH/Y003160/1).

Accessibility information

·       The room for the conference will be on the ground floor and accessible to wheelchair users.

·       There are disabled toilets a short distance from the room.

·       There will be a short break between each session and the Q&A.

·       We are happy for personal assistants to attend.

·       We can request sign-language interpretation, though we will need to know ASAP if it is required.

·       We cannot provide a hearing loop, but can provide a Roger Pen. We will need notice if it is required.

·       We can permit service animals to attend.

·       A nearby quiet room can be made available if required.

·       The room will have available seating.

·       We will ask all speakers to aim to make presentation materials available in advance.

·       The venue for conference dinners is TBC, but all dinners are optional. Venues for lunches will be in the same building as the talks and wheelchair accessible.