Canadian Studies News and Notes

Canadian Studies News and Notes l. "Perspectives on Native North American Oral Literature," University ofBritish Columbia, First Nations House of Learning and Green College, 5-8 March, Vancouver, British Columbia. One of the main aims of the conference is to bring together what is normally apart: the academic and the creative, the past and the present, the Pacific and Atlantic and the many Native nations in between, with their immense range oforal traditions. The conference understands itselfalso as a means to celebrate and pay respect to the richness, beauty and vitality ofNative American culture as it is, was and will be. Registration for the conference is possible by mail oremail . Registration fees are $70 for faculty and $50 for students/underemployed. For informationcontact: The University ofBritish Columbia, Department of English, "First Nations Oral Literature Conference" #397 1873 East Mall, Vancouver, B.C. Canada V6T lZl; fax: [l) (604) 822-6906; e-mail: borrows@law.ubc.ca or gudrund@unixg.ubc.ca 2. "New Frontiers in Graduate History," Department of History and York Graduate Students Association, 2nd Annual Graduate Student History Conference, 13-14March, York University, Toronto, Ontario. Keynote speakers will be Dr. John T. Saywell, Dr. Kathryn McPherson and Dr. Jeremy Trevett, of the Dept. of History, York University. Panels will be organized into sessions of two or three papers with 20 minutes allotted for the presentation ofeach. The main themes of the conference are: race and borders, nation and culture, the voice and the gaze, politics and people, gender and boundaries and war and society. For further information visit the web page at http://www. yorku.ca/deptfhistarts 186 3. "The Third Solitude: Canadian Minority Writing,'' Universite de Montreal, 19-20 March Universite de Montreal, Montreal, Quebec. The traditional model of a bi-cultural Canada has given way in recent years to a more critical investigation ofminority cultural narratives and their contribution to the Canadian cultural landscape. The emergence of minority and ethnic writing has shifted the focus of debate from the "centre" of Canadian letters to its peripheries. Yet critical questions remain: Where do these minority Literatures position themselves with respect to the mainstream and where are they headed? Can we still speak ofan "ethnic literature" when it is written for the most part by an acculturated third or fourth generation? What are the consequences of identifying oneself as an ethnic writer rather than a Canadian writer? What possible alternatives are there to these problematic labels? What role do the critics, academics, small presses, readings, and conferences play in constructing a cohesive category called "Canadian ethnic literature"? The aim of this conference is to render more visible the work of minority writers and to examine the manner in which they are situated within the prevailing social and cultural mainstream of Canada. Papers in English or French that address minority subjectivity within the largerCanadiancontext are welcome, as are papers dealing with a particular body of work and/or particular writers. Contact: Domenic Beneventi or Licia Canton, Departement d'etudes anglaises, Universite de Montreal, P.O. Box 6128, Succ. Centre-ville, Montreal, Quebec, H3C 317; tel: [l] (514) 329-3254; fax: [l] (514) 323-4085; e-mail: dbeneventi@securenet.net or cantonli@total.net Revue d'itudes canadiennes Vol. 32, No. 3 (Automne 1997 Fall) 4. "Canada and World Order: Facing the New Millennium," Centre for Canadian Studies, Mount Allison University, 2-4 April, Sackville, New Brunswick. This interdisciplinary conference will explore Canada's relations with the international community from the historical and contemporary perspectives. Main themes include: institutions, military security, globalization , culture, human rights and human security. For more information on the conference visit the web at http://aci.mta. ca/depts/canadian_studies/ 5. "Culture and Context," British Association for Canadian Studies (BACS) 6-9 April, Staffordshire University, Stoke-on-Trent, England. The Conference will address the following themes from a Canadian Studies perspective : I. Cultural Policy and urban renewal: the use of cultural and artistic expression (arts, performance, music, literature, dance) in urban revitalisation and regeneration projects . Mega-events, place-marketing, city of culture labelling, festivals and urban tourism. 2. Cultural identity, heritage and a sense of belonging: this could link in to a variety of interests including...