Royal  Geographical Society Annual International Conference

 

Thursday, May 3rd - Saturday, May 5th 2007

Royal Geographical Society
with IBG and Imperial College, London

Call for Papers: Geographies of Folklore  Session

Organized by Caron Lipman, Queen Mary, University of London and
Jude Hill, University of Exeter

Recent moves to focus on lay beliefs and everyday practices suggest the usefulness of an engagement with folklore to allow us to rethink alternative histories and geographies of place. Attitudes to folklore study continue to be influenced by its nineteenth century roots, where the study of the ‘authentic’ vernacular was enlisted for the ideology of romantic nationalism. Folklore is now a disparate sphere of ideas and practices, ranging from a focus on non-verbal local art forms and customary practices, mundane traditions of everyday life, and religious, mythic narratives, especially those considered alternative to dominant belief structures.

Recent work within geography has critically examined the relationship between national identity and hybridity, especially relating to rural and historical landscapes and to specific art forms such as music. But there is further scope to extend folklore research to encompass urban and domestic sites; to examine the material culture of folk collections; and to consider the contemporary manifestations of folklore stories, beliefs and practices as a way of investigating the relationship between continuity and change within modern society and the complex ways people relate to and experience place.

We welcome papers which address these themes from any area of scholarship, contemporary or historical.

Please send abstracts (max 200 words) to both convenors by February 25th:

Caron Lipman,  cwlipman@blueyonder.co.uk

Jude Hill,  Jude.Hill@exeter.ac.uk

 
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