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International Association for the Fantastic in the Arts

CfP: A Wizard of Their Age 2: Critical Essays from the Harry Potter Generation

By In CFP On November 23, 2016


A Wizard of Their Age 2: Critical Essays from the Harry Potter Generation

deadline for submissions:
December 31, 2016

full name / name of organization:
Kate Glassman and Jenny McDougal | St. Catherine University

contact email:
kgglassman@stkate.edu

Since its first volume hit UK stores in 1997, Harry Potter has become a best-selling phenomenon that has forced readers and critics to reconsider how and what we read, and revolutionized the publishing industry from the bottom up. With countless accolades and roughly 500 million English copies in print, eight feature films, with another on its way, and merchandise that continues to sell too well to be pulled from shelves, Harry Potter remains a fixed cultural icon 20 years on.

Now, in light of J.K. Rowling’s resurgence of material, with the Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them film series, a redesigned Pottermore with controversial new universe building, and the authorized fan-play “The Cursed Child,” great minds are once again turning towards Hogwarts.

We are seeking critical essays that expand our understanding of this universe and these characters, particularly those that offer a new lens through which to view readers’ long-established perceptions of the series.

Please review the Table of Contents of the first volume of A Wizard of Their Age: Critical Essays from the Harry Potter Generation (SUNY Press) to see previous topics or, perhaps, what is missing

We welcome any approach, though we are particularly interested in analyses of

race and ethnicity
class
gender, sex, and sexuality
the YA genre
women writers (their approach and reception)
thorough exploration of any element, group, or creation of that universe
the worlds beyond the text (Pottermore, the Wizarding World theme park, fandom/fanfiction, etc.)
and character analyses beyond the Golden Trio

Guidelines:

Authors must fall within the “generation” of Harry Potter – those who were with Harry from the very start (or soon thereafter), and were of the age originally targeted by the series. Though we celebrate the phenomenal reach of the series across age (among many other boundaries), this collection is centering on the voices of those who grew up with Harry Potter. [Undergraduate or recent graduates]

Send abstracts of 250 words to kgglassman@stkate.edu no later than October 31st. Final essays of no more than 30 pages (double-spaced), by December 31st.

This follow-up collection will be edited by Professors Jenny McDougal and Kate Glassman (St. Catherine University) in partnership with a board of contributing editors.