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<br><br><br> <br><br><br>
-'''Symposium in the context of [http://www.ljubljana.si/en/living-in-ljubljana/focus/12645/detail.html Ljubljana World Book Capital]'''<br>+'''Symposium in the context of [http://www.ljubljana.si/en/living-in-ljubljana/focus/12645/detail.html Ljubljana World Book Capital 2010]'''<br>
Ljubljana, Slovenia, 22-23 September 2010, Town Hall<br> Ljubljana, Slovenia, 22-23 September 2010, Town Hall<br>
University of Nova Gorica, Institute for Cultural Studies<br> University of Nova Gorica, Institute for Cultural Studies<br>
-in conjunction with European COST Action “Women Writers In History”<br>+in conjunction with European COST Action IS0901 “[http://www.womenwriters.nl/index.php/Project_news '''Women Writers In History''']”<br><br>
-and Ljubljana World Book Capital 2010<br><br>+
 +The Symposium “Women’s Authorship and Literatures of Small Countries in the 19th Century” investigated the role and place of women authors within “smaller” cultures, and their connections with their female counterparts in “larger”, dominating cultures. Slovenia is itself one of the small states of Europe, and a small linguistic area. Smallness is thus an intrinsically interesting issue for Slovenia/Ljubljana. The colloquium linked the world of books with the academic world.<br><br>
- +'''Programme''' <br><br>
-The colloquium “Women’s Authorship and Literatures of Small Countries in the 19th Century” will investigate the role and place of women authors within “smaller” cultures, and their connections with their female counterparts in “larger”, dominating cultures. Slovenia is itself one of the small states of Europe, and a small linguistic area. Smallness is thus an intrinsically interesting issue for Slovenia/Ljubljana. The colloquium will link the world of books with the academic world.<br><br>+
- +
-The colloquium will revisit the problematical concept of literary smallness (Casanova 2004) and redefine it in national, linguistic, and (sub)cultural terms, as well as extend it to include female writing. The colloquium seeks to explore such questions as:<br>+
-*Did women writers of small literatures also “act in concert to challenge their domination by the centres”? (Casanova 2004, p.248) <br> +
-*In which ways did women writers experience the double marginalization caused by their subordination to the patriarchal agendas of the 19th century and, in many small cultures, linked to their national subordination?<br>+
-*How did nationalism, feminism and their intersections facilitate or hinder women’s entry into the national and European literary space? <br>+
-*By whom were women writers influenced? By great national male authors or by female iconic figures like George Sand or Germaine de Staël, or even by their female contemporaries from other (small?) literatures?<br>+
-*How have literary canonizing processes treated female writers from small countries? Were they received in the large cultures or were their writings overshadowed by the works of male authors?<br><br>+
- +
-The aim of this colloquium is to situate the participation of women in “smaller” countries in its international gendered context, for the very period when nationalism was also busy establishing a literary canon, into which very few women were admitted. It will be shown that during the same period there was also a ''female [and writing] Europe''.<br><br>+
- +
-Written culture and literature played a particularly important role as they were often considered constitutive elements in shaping national consciousness and identity under foreign domination. Similar emphasis on literature was common to all stateless nations in the German-speaking Austrian, Russian, and Ottoman Empires. But even without being dominated, smaller countries occupied a particular position in literary geography. Denmark, despite having its own language, was part of the larger (non-dominating) entity of Scandinavia. And in the Netherlands, French was currently used by the elite. In the turmoil of the 19th century many changes were made to the European political map which influenced a new perception of the literature of the nations experiencing profound historical change. In this period Portugal and Spain, for centuries major economic, political and military powers, were reduced to “small” countries at the periphery of Europe.<br><br>+
- +
-Despite the differences between the respective linguistic situations, the literatures of many European countries in the 19th century can be considered “minor” as they were to a large part on the receiving side of international literary exchanges; unlike countries like France and England who are considered “exporting” countries (cf. Moretti; Cohen/Dever). During the colloquium, Casanova’s judicious remark about the literatures of smaller nations taking each other as models and as points of reference will be restated and re-examined from a gendered perspective. <br><br>+
- +
- +
-'''Provisional programme''' (more details soon) <br><br>+
''22 September 2010'' <br><br> ''22 September 2010'' <br><br>
Line 34: Line 17:
Opening <br> Opening <br>
Welcome by <br> Welcome by <br>
-[http://www.womenwriters.nl/index.php/Katja_Mihurko_Poniz Katja Mihurko-Poniz], organizer <br><br>+*[http://www.womenwriters.nl/index.php/Katja_Mihurko_Poniz Dr. Katja Mihurko Poniž], University of Nova Gorica <br>
 +*Dr. Tanja Petrovi?, Director of the Institute for Cultural Studies, University of Nova Gorica<br>
 +*Dr. Primož Pristovšek, Slovenian Research Agency, [http://www.cost.esf.org/about_cost COST] National Coordinator<br>
 +*Dr. Uroš Grilc, Ljubljana World Book Capital<br><br>
10.00 <br> 10.00 <br>
Key-note lecture:<br> Key-note lecture:<br>
-*Gillian Dow, University of Southampton, School of Humanities <br><br>+*[http://www.womenwriters.nl/index.php/Suzan_van_Dijk%2C_Utrecht_University Suzan van Dijk] (Huygens Institute The Hague, Netherlands)<br>
 +**Foreign women’s writing imported into small countries: the case of [http://neww.huygens.knaw.nl/receptions?fromreceptionsearch=1&sort=upper(authors_works.name)&page=1&searchtoggle=on&workauthor=&worktitle=&workcountry_ids=14&workcountry_ids=3&workcountry_ids=4&receptionauthor=&receptiontitle=&receptionyear=&country_ids=2&references=&notes=&per_page=200&x=19&y=21 the Netherlands] [[(abstract van Dijk)]]<br><br>
11.00-11.15 <br> 11.00-11.15 <br>
Coffee/tea break<br><br> Coffee/tea break<br><br>
11.30 <br> 11.30 <br>
-First session: <br>+First session (a): <br>
-'''Individual women authors leaving their own countries, acting - or not - as mediators''' <br><br>+'''Individual women authors leaving their own countries, acting - or not - as mediators (I)''' <br>
 +*[http://www.womenwriters.nl/index.php/Viola_Parente-Capkova Viola Parente-?apková] (University of Turku, Finland)<br>
 +** The Case of [http://neww.huygens.knaw.nl/authors/show/3463 L. Onerva]: A “Decadent New Woman” Cultural Mediator within the Finnish National Literary Institution [[(abstract)]]<br>
 +*[http://www.womenwriters.nl/index.php/Jelena_Baki%C4%87 Jelena Baki?] (University of Belgrad, Serbia)<br>
 +** Three women writers [http://neww.huygens.knaw.nl/authors?fromauthorsearch=1&sort=upper(authors.name)&page=1&searchtoggle=on&authorname=&pseudonymflag=0&pseudonymflag=1&gender=&year=&country_ids=2129&bibliography=&personal_situation=&financial_situation=&notes=&per_page=20&x=24&y=19 from Montenegro] in the 19th Century [[(abstract Baki?)]]<br>
13.00<br> 13.00<br>
Lunch<br><br> Lunch<br><br>
14.30<br> 14.30<br>
-Second session:<br>+First session (b):<br>
-'''Women writers participating - or not - in international currents'''<br><br>+'''Individual women authors leaving their own countries, acting - or not - as mediators (II)''' <br>
-16.30<br>+*[http://www.womenwriters.nl/index.php/Juliana_Jovicic Juliana Jovi?i?] (University of Novi Sad, Serbia)<br>
 +** [http://neww.huygens.knaw.nl/authors/show/3452 Therese Albertine Luise von Jakob-Robinson] (Talvj, 1797–1870) and [http://neww.huygens.knaw.nl/authors/show/3477 Wilhelmina (Mina) Vukmanovi?-Karadži?] (1828-1894) and the cultural heritage of Slavic nations: Their role and contribution as cross-cultural mediators in providing entrance of small Serbian literature into European cultural heritage [[(abstract Jovicic)]]<br>
 +*[http://www.womenwriters.nl/index.php/Kirsty_Hooper Kirsty Hooper] (University of Liverpool, UK)<br>
 +** [http://neww.huygens.knaw.nl/authors/show/3479 Sofía Casanova] (Coruña, Spain, 1861– Pozna?, Poland, 1958): Writing between three ‘small literatures’ in late 19th-century Europe [[(abstract Hooper)]]<br><br>
 +15.30 <br>
 +Second session (a):<br>
 +'''Women writers participating - or not - in international currents (I)'''<br>
 +*[http://www.womenwriters.nl/index.php/Ramona_Mihaila Ramona Mihaila] (Spiru Haret University Bucharest, Rumania) <br>
 +**Canonical reconsideration of [http://neww.huygens.knaw.nl/authors?fromauthorsearch=1&sort=upper(authors.name)&page=1&searchtoggle=on&authorname=&pseudonymflag=0&pseudonymflag=1&gender=&year=&country_ids=11&bibliography=&personal_situation=&financial_situation=&notes=&per_page=20&x=21&y=20 19th-century Romanian women writers] [[(abstract Mihaila)]]<br>
 +*[http://www.womenwriters.nl/index.php/Nadejda_Alexandrova Nadezhda Alexandrova] (St. Kliment Ohridski University, Bulgaria)<br>
 +** Does women’s writing have infancy? The case of [http://neww.huygens.knaw.nl/authors?fromauthorsearch=1&sort=upper(authors.name)&page=1&searchtoggle=on&authorname=&pseudonymflag=0&pseudonymflag=1&gender=&year=&country_ids=31&bibliography=&personal_situation=&financial_situation=&notes=&per_page=20&x=15&y=20 Bulgarian women authors] of the 19th century [[(abstract Alexandrova)]]<br>
 +*[http://www.womenwriters.nl/index.php/Silvija_Borovnik Silvija Borovnik] (University of Maribor, Slovenia)<br>
 +**[http://neww.huygens.knaw.nl/authors/show/3265 Marica Nadišek Bartol]'s literary work [[(abstract Borovnik)]]<br>
 +17.00<br>
Coffee/tea break<br><br> Coffee/tea break<br><br>
-16.45<br>+17.15<br>
-Key-note lecture <br><br>+Key-note lecture <br>
-18. 00 <br>+*[http://www.womenwriters.nl/index.php/Zsuzsanna_Varga Zsuzsanna Varga] (University of Glasgow, UK)<br>
-Reception offered by Mr. Zoran Jankovi?, Mayor of Ljubljana <br><br><br>+**Hungarian women writers as mediators of letters [[(abstract Varga)]] <br><br>
- +18.00 <br>
 +Reception offered by Mr. Zoran Jankovi?, Mayor of Ljubljana <br><br>
 +[[Image:Sprejem_za_udeležence_simpozija_Prispevki_žensk_Ljubljani_055.JPG]]<br><br>
''23 September 2010'' <br><br> ''23 September 2010'' <br><br>
-9.30 <br>+9.00 <br>
 +Second session (b):<br>
 +'''Women writers participating - or not - in international currents (II)'''<br>
 +* Kukku Melkas (University of Turku, Finland) <br>
 +**Alternative histories - Maila Talvio's historical novels <br><br>
 +*[http://www.womenwriters.nl/index.php/Milena_Mileva_Bla%C5%BEi%C4%87 Milena Mileva Blaži?] (University of Ljubljana, Slovenia)<br>
 +**Female Authorship and the New Sensibility in Slovenian Youth Literature in 19th Century [[(abstract Blaži?)]]<br><br>
 +*[http://www.womenwriters.nl/index.php/Alenka_Jensterle_Dole%C5%BEal Alenka Jensterle Doležal] (Charles University Prague, Czech Republic)<br>
 +** Autobiographical characteristics of the female hero - between stereotype and modern psychology [[(abstract Doležal)]]<br><br>
 +10.30 <br>
 +Key-note lecture <br>
 +*[http://www.womenwriters.nl/index.php/Gillian_Dow Gillian Dow], University of Southampton, Chawton Library <br>
 +** Critics and Canonicity: Anglo-American feminism and the case of [http://neww.huygens.knaw.nl/authors/show/242 Jane Austen] [[(abstract Dow)]]<br><br>
 +11.15<br>
 +Coffee/tea break<br><br>
 +11.30<br>
Third session: <br> Third session: <br>
-'''Women reading internationally''' <br><br>+'''Women reading internationally''' <br>
-11.00<br>+*[http://www.womenwriters.nl/index.php/Suzana_Coha Suzana Coha] (University of Zagreb, Croatia)<br>
-Coffee/tea break<br><br> +** (In)compatible with patriarchal borders of nation: status of female readers and [http://neww.huygens.knaw.nl/authors?fromauthorsearch=1&sort=upper(authors.name)&page=1&searchtoggle=on&authorname=&pseudonymflag=0&pseudonymflag=1&gender=&year=&country_ids=2118&bibliography=&personal_situation=&financial_situation=&notes=&per_page=20&x=12&y=16 authors] in the Croatian National Revival [[(abstract Coha)]]<br>
-11.15<br>+*[http://www.womenwriters.nl/index.php/Onorina_Botezat Onorina Botezat] (University Spiru Haret, Constan?a, Rumania)<br>
-Presentation of COST "Training School" <br><br>+**Images of the Other in 19th Century [http://neww.huygens.knaw.nl/authors?fromauthorsearch=1&sort=upper(authors.name)&page=1&searchtoggle=on&authorname=&pseudonymflag=0&pseudonymflag=1&gender=&year=&country_ids=11&bibliography=&personal_situation=&financial_situation=&notes=&per_page=20&x=11&y=17 Romanian Women]'s Writings [[(abstract Botezat)]]<br>
-12.30 <br>+* [http://www.womenwriters.nl/index.php/Katja_Mihurko_Poniz Katja Mihurko Poniž] and [http://www.womenwriters.nl/index.php/Tanja_Badalic Tanja Badalic] (University of Nova Gorica, Slovenia)<br>
 +** The [http://neww.huygens.knaw.nl/receptions?fromreceptionsearch=1&sort=upper(authors_works.name)&page=1&searchtoggle=on&workauthor=&worktitle=&receptionauthor=&receptiontitle=&receptionyear=&country_ids=2122&references=&notes=&per_page=20&x=16&y=22 Reception] of European Writers in the 19th Century in Slovenia: a Research of Three Library Catalogues [[(abstract Mihurko Poniž)]]<br><br>
 +13.00 <br>
Lunch <br><br> Lunch <br><br>
-14.00 <br>+14.30 <br>
Fourth session: <br> Fourth session: <br>
-'''Female examples and/or heroines''' <br><br>+'''Female examples and/or heroines''' <br>
-15.30<br>+*[http://www.womenwriters.nl/index.php/Maarit_Leskela Maarit Leskelä-Kärki] (University of Turku, Finland)<br>
 +** Portrayal of a woman writer: [http://neww.huygens.knaw.nl/authors/show/3635 Aino Kallas]’s biography of Lydia Koidula (1915) [[(abstract Leskelä-Kärki)]]<br>
 +*[http://www.womenwriters.nl/index.php/Henriette_Partzsch Henriette Partzsch] (University of St. Andrews, UK)<br>
 +** [http://neww.huygens.knaw.nl/authors/show/177 Fredrika Bremer] visits the Pope: The [http://neww.huygens.knaw.nl/receptions?fromreceptionsearch=1&sort=upper(authors_works.name)&page=1&searchtoggle=on&workauthor=bremer&worktitle=&receptionauthor=&receptiontitle=&receptionyear=&country_ids=6&references=&notes=&per_page=20&x=12&y=16 Spanish Reception] of a Successful Swedish Woman Writer [[(abstract Partzsch)]]<br>
 +*Marta Soucková (University of Precov, Slovakia)<br>
 +**On the poetics of prose by Slovak realistic authors or To the beginning of women's writing in Slovakia<br><br>
 +16.00<br>
Coffee/tea break<br><br> Coffee/tea break<br><br>
-15.45<br>+16.15<br>
Keynote lecture:<br> Keynote lecture:<br>
-*Suzan van Dijk, Huygens Institute, The Hague<br><br><br>+*[http://www.womenwriters.nl/index.php/Biljana_Doj%C4%8Dinovi%C4%87_Ne%C5%A1i%C4%87 Biljana Doj?inovi?] (University of Belgrade, Serbia)<br>
-16.30<br>+**Is poetry the universal possession of (wo)mankind – the concept of small literature between world and women’s literature [[(abstract Doj?inovi?)]] <br><br>
-Closure: Round table discussion – participating: keynote speakers<br><br>+17.00<br>
 +Closure: Round table discussion <br><br>
 + 
 +The Symposium revisited the problematical concept of literary smallness (Casanova 2004) and redefined it in national, linguistic, and (sub)cultural terms, as well as extend it to include female writing. The Symposium sought to explore such questions as:<br>
 +*Did women writers of small literatures also “act in concert to challenge their domination by the centres”? (Casanova 2004, p.248) <br>
 +*In which ways did women writers experience the double marginalization caused by their subordination to the patriarchal agendas of the 19th century and, in many small cultures, linked to their national subordination?<br>
 +*How did nationalism, feminism and their intersections facilitate or hinder women’s entry into the national and European literary space? <br>
 +*By whom were women writers influenced? By great national male authors or by female iconic figures like George Sand or Germaine de Staël, or even by their female contemporaries from other (small?) literatures?<br>
 +*How have literary canonizing processes treated female writers from small countries? Were they received in the large cultures or were their writings overshadowed by the works of male authors?<br><br>
 + 
 +The aim of this Symposium was to situate the participation of women in “smaller” countries in its international gendered context, for the very period when nationalism was also busy establishing a literary canon, into which very few women were admitted. It has been shown that during the same period there was also a ''female [and writing] Europe''.<br><br>
 + 
 +Written culture and literature played a particularly important role as they were often considered constitutive elements in shaping national consciousness and identity under foreign domination. Similar emphasis on literature was common to all stateless nations in the German-speaking Austrian, Russian, and Ottoman Empires. But even without being dominated, smaller countries occupied a particular position in literary geography. Denmark, despite having its own language, was part of the larger (non-dominating) entity of Scandinavia. And in the Netherlands, French was currently used by the elite. In the turmoil of the 19th century many changes were made to the European political map which influenced a new perception of the literature of the nations experiencing profound historical change. In this period Portugal and Spain, for centuries major economic, political and military powers, were reduced to “small” countries at the periphery of Europe.<br><br>
 + 
 +Despite the differences between the respective linguistic situations, the literatures of many European countries in the 19th century can be considered “minor” as they were to a large part on the receiving side of international literary exchanges; unlike countries like France and England who are considered “exporting” countries (cf. Moretti; Cohen/Dever). During the Symposium, Casanova’s judicious remark about the literatures of smaller nations taking each other as models and as points of reference was restated and re-examined from a gendered perspective. <br><br>
 + 
For information and inscription:<br> For information and inscription:<br>
-contact [http://www.womenwriters.nl/index.php/Katja_Mihurko_Poniz Katja Mihurko-Poniz].+*contact [http://www.womenwriters.nl/index.php/Katja_Mihurko_Poniz Katja Mihurko-Poniz].<br><br>
Programme Committee:<br> Programme Committee:<br>
-*Katja Mihurko Poniž, University of Nova Gorica, Institute for Cultural Studies<br>+*[http://www.womenwriters.nl/index.php/Katja_Mihurko_Poniz Katja Mihurko Poniž], University of Nova Gorica, Institute for Cultural Studies<br>
-*Henriette Partzsch, University of St Andrews, School of Modern Languages <br> +*[http://www.womenwriters.nl/index.php/Henriette_Partzsch Henriette Partzsch], University of St Andrews, School of Modern Languages <br>
-*Kati Launis, University of Turku, School of History, Cultural Research and Art Studies <br>+*[http://www.womenwriters.nl/index.php/Kati_Launis Kati Launis], University of Turku, School of History, Cultural Research and Art Studies <br>
-*Milena Mileva Blaži?, University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Education. <br><br>+*[http://www.womenwriters.nl/index.php/Milena_Mileva_Bla%C5%BEi%C4%87 Milena Mileva Blaži?], University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Education. <br><br>
References:<br> References:<br>
*Pascale Casanova, ''The World Republic of Letters''. Cambridge MA/London, Harvard UP, 2004 (tr. of ''La République mondiale des lettres'' [1999] by M.B. DeBevoise). <br> *Pascale Casanova, ''The World Republic of Letters''. Cambridge MA/London, Harvard UP, 2004 (tr. of ''La République mondiale des lettres'' [1999] by M.B. DeBevoise). <br>
*Margaret Cohen, Carolyn Dever (eds.), ''The literary channel. The international invention of the novel''. Princeton and Oxford, Princeton Un. press, 2002.<br> *Margaret Cohen, Carolyn Dever (eds.), ''The literary channel. The international invention of the novel''. Princeton and Oxford, Princeton Un. press, 2002.<br>
-*Franco Moretti, ''Atlas of the European Novel 1800-1900''. London/New York, Verso, 1998.<br><br> +*Franco Moretti, ''Atlas of the European Novel 1800-1900''. London/New York, Verso, 1998.
<br><br><br> <br><br><br>
-SvD, 18 July 2010<br><br><br>+AsK, October 2012<br><br><br>
<hr> <hr>
<br> <br>
-*Conferences and activities > COST meetings > Ljubljana World Book Capital<br><br>+*Conferences and activities > [http://www.womenwriters.nl/index.php/NEWW_international_conferences NEWW international conferences] > Ljubljana World Book Capital<br><br>

Current revision


Women's authorship

and literatures of small countries in the 19th century




Symposium in the context of Ljubljana World Book Capital 2010
Ljubljana, Slovenia, 22-23 September 2010, Town Hall
University of Nova Gorica, Institute for Cultural Studies
in conjunction with European COST Action IS0901 “Women Writers In History

The Symposium “Women’s Authorship and Literatures of Small Countries in the 19th Century” investigated the role and place of women authors within “smaller” cultures, and their connections with their female counterparts in “larger”, dominating cultures. Slovenia is itself one of the small states of Europe, and a small linguistic area. Smallness is thus an intrinsically interesting issue for Slovenia/Ljubljana. The colloquium linked the world of books with the academic world.

Programme

22 September 2010

9.30
Opening
Welcome by

  • Dr. Katja Mihurko Poniž, University of Nova Gorica
  • Dr. Tanja Petrovi?, Director of the Institute for Cultural Studies, University of Nova Gorica
  • Dr. Primož Pristovšek, Slovenian Research Agency, COST National Coordinator
  • Dr. Uroš Grilc, Ljubljana World Book Capital

10.00
Key-note lecture:

11.00-11.15
Coffee/tea break

11.30
First session (a):
Individual women authors leaving their own countries, acting - or not - as mediators (I)

13.00
Lunch

14.30
First session (b):
Individual women authors leaving their own countries, acting - or not - as mediators (II)

15.30
Second session (a):
Women writers participating - or not - in international currents (I)

17.00
Coffee/tea break

17.15
Key-note lecture

18.00
Reception offered by Mr. Zoran Jankovi?, Mayor of Ljubljana

Image:Sprejem_za_udeležence_simpozija_Prispevki_žensk_Ljubljani_055.JPG

23 September 2010

9.00
Second session (b):
Women writers participating - or not - in international currents (II)

  • Kukku Melkas (University of Turku, Finland)
    • Alternative histories - Maila Talvio's historical novels

  • Milena Mileva Blaži? (University of Ljubljana, Slovenia)
    • Female Authorship and the New Sensibility in Slovenian Youth Literature in 19th Century (abstract Blaži?)

  • Alenka Jensterle Doležal (Charles University Prague, Czech Republic)
    • Autobiographical characteristics of the female hero - between stereotype and modern psychology (abstract Doležal)

10.30
Key-note lecture

11.15
Coffee/tea break

11.30
Third session:
Women reading internationally

13.00
Lunch

14.30
Fourth session:
Female examples and/or heroines

16.00
Coffee/tea break

16.15
Keynote lecture:

  • Biljana Doj?inovi? (University of Belgrade, Serbia)
    • Is poetry the universal possession of (wo)mankind – the concept of small literature between world and women’s literature (abstract Doj?inovi?)

17.00
Closure: Round table discussion

The Symposium revisited the problematical concept of literary smallness (Casanova 2004) and redefined it in national, linguistic, and (sub)cultural terms, as well as extend it to include female writing. The Symposium sought to explore such questions as:

  • Did women writers of small literatures also “act in concert to challenge their domination by the centres”? (Casanova 2004, p.248)
  • In which ways did women writers experience the double marginalization caused by their subordination to the patriarchal agendas of the 19th century and, in many small cultures, linked to their national subordination?
  • How did nationalism, feminism and their intersections facilitate or hinder women’s entry into the national and European literary space?
  • By whom were women writers influenced? By great national male authors or by female iconic figures like George Sand or Germaine de Staël, or even by their female contemporaries from other (small?) literatures?
  • How have literary canonizing processes treated female writers from small countries? Were they received in the large cultures or were their writings overshadowed by the works of male authors?

The aim of this Symposium was to situate the participation of women in “smaller” countries in its international gendered context, for the very period when nationalism was also busy establishing a literary canon, into which very few women were admitted. It has been shown that during the same period there was also a female [and writing] Europe.

Written culture and literature played a particularly important role as they were often considered constitutive elements in shaping national consciousness and identity under foreign domination. Similar emphasis on literature was common to all stateless nations in the German-speaking Austrian, Russian, and Ottoman Empires. But even without being dominated, smaller countries occupied a particular position in literary geography. Denmark, despite having its own language, was part of the larger (non-dominating) entity of Scandinavia. And in the Netherlands, French was currently used by the elite. In the turmoil of the 19th century many changes were made to the European political map which influenced a new perception of the literature of the nations experiencing profound historical change. In this period Portugal and Spain, for centuries major economic, political and military powers, were reduced to “small” countries at the periphery of Europe.

Despite the differences between the respective linguistic situations, the literatures of many European countries in the 19th century can be considered “minor” as they were to a large part on the receiving side of international literary exchanges; unlike countries like France and England who are considered “exporting” countries (cf. Moretti; Cohen/Dever). During the Symposium, Casanova’s judicious remark about the literatures of smaller nations taking each other as models and as points of reference was restated and re-examined from a gendered perspective.


For information and inscription:

Programme Committee:

References:

  • Pascale Casanova, The World Republic of Letters. Cambridge MA/London, Harvard UP, 2004 (tr. of La République mondiale des lettres [1999] by M.B. DeBevoise).
  • Margaret Cohen, Carolyn Dever (eds.), The literary channel. The international invention of the novel. Princeton and Oxford, Princeton Un. press, 2002.
  • Franco Moretti, Atlas of the European Novel 1800-1900. London/New York, Verso, 1998.





AsK, October 2012




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