CFP: Margaret Cavendish on Literature

The University of Southampton is hosting an interdisciplinary conference exploring Margaret Cavendish’s theory of literature and asking how it informs her own literary practice. (See below for a more detailed outline of its themes.) The conference will involve sessions for submitted papers.

We invite submissions of abstracts for consideration for inclusion in the open sessions:

• The abstract must be no longer than 500 words.
• It must be submitted as a separate attachment and suitable for blind review. Your name and affiliation should appear in your email only.
• Abstracts are to be submitted to Lisa White ([email protected]), not the organisers.
• The deadline for submission is January 31 2025.

Early career researchers and members of underrepresented groups are strongly encouraged to submit.

We will provide up to 3 nights’ accommodation and additional funds of up to £150 towards UK-based travel for open session presenters.

Accepted papers will be also be considered for publication in an edited collection of essays on the theme of the conference.

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

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 such questions as:

·       How do Cavendish's various remarks on literature hang together? Do they add up to a consistent or considered theory of what literature is or ought to be? If so, how does that theory relate to Cavendish's broader theoretical commitments, for example, her metaphysics, philosophy of mind, and natural philosophy?

·       How do Cavendish's reflections on what poets and playwrights are to do inform her own writings? In what ways do the alien creatures and immaterial spirits in her fiction, for example, satisfy the demand to imitate nature? How are the stock characters identified by character traits (Lord Fatherly, Lady Bashful, etc.) supposed to do justice to the "natural humours of mankind"?

·       How does Cavendish's self-assessment as a writer relate to her views on literature and its roles. Might her claims to be ignorant of the "art" and "rules" of poetry be something other than expressions of humility?

·       How do those views inform her critical assessments of other writers? Do they, for example, underpin her defence of Shakespeare as a "natural poet"?

·       How do Cavendish's claims about literature relate to those of her contemporaries, such as Philip Sidney, Ben Johnson or William Davenant, or to ancient views in circulation in the early modern era following their revival by the Renaissance Humanists? What is the context for Cavendish's pronouncements on poetry?

·       How does Cavendish’s theory of literature shape her use of literary genre and form? Does she understand different genres such as poetry, for example, as having a different function than plays, prose fiction, or autobiography?

·       To what extent does gender and/or sexuality relate to or inform her theories of literature?

·       In what ways might Cavendish’s theory of literature help us understand her depictions of authorship and/or selfhood?

·       Scholars have charted some of the ways in which Cavendish’s metaphysics and philosophy of nature developed from her early to later writings. How does Cavendish’s theory of literature change over time?

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.