CALL FOR PAPERS
Speaking Her Mind: Canadian Women and Public Presence
20-22 October 2016
University of Calgary

How are women engaging with public discussion and debate in Canada?
Speaking Her Mind: Canadian Women and Public Presence is the follow-up conference to Discourse and Dynamics: Canadian Women as Public Intellectuals, which took place at Mount Allison University in October 2014 (see discoursedynamics.ca). As Discourse and Dynamics made clear, “public intellectual” remains an unsatisfactory term for many women who have contributed to and continue to engage in public discussion and debate in Canada. Speaking Her Mind aims to take that investigation to the next level.

Proposals are invited for presentations that explore Canadian women’s public presence on questions of concern related to social, political, cultural, economic, literary, artistic, linguistic, diplomatic, and environmental issues. A wide range of participation is invited, from individual papers to panels, performances, or other forms of discussion. The following are suggestions but all proposals for individual or collaborative presentations are welcome.
• Women’s right to speak
• Public presences that have made a difference
• When the body speaks
• Speaking about violence, poverty, racism, health
• Politics and its Discontents
• Entering/leaving the public sphere
• Opinions and their backlash
• Forms of speaking: literature, art, music, dance, photography

Proposals should include:
1. title (up to 150 characters) 2. abstract (100-150 words) 3. description (300 words)
& on a separate page a short biographical note and full contact information

Proposals may be submitted electronically by October 15, 2015 (deadline extended!) to speakinghermind@ucalgary.ca

ORGANIZERS:

Aritha van Herk
Professor, Department of English
2500 University Dr. N.W.
University of Calgary
Calgary, Alberta
T2N 1N4

Christl Verduyn
Director, Centre for Canadian Studies
Professor, Department of English
Mount Allison University
Sackville, New Brunswick
E4L 1G9