Childhood and postcolonialism symposium, 15th-16th December 2009
On 15-16 december, 2009 the research group CHILLL arranges the Childhood and postcolonialism symposium at Växjö university, in the K-buiding (for detailed information, see programme as pdf). The conference is arranged by CHILLL in cooperation with the department of humanities, Postcolonial forum, LUN (teacher education research board) and the Forum for intermedial studies.
The symposium deals with general questions of postcolonialism and childhood, liminality, marginalisation and the depiction of "the other" in different childhood media. Ethnic minorities and their depiction in media are one of the focus points, as well as multiculturalism in different childhood research, pedagogical and media contexts. General theoretical approaches are discussed as well as examples from different literary and intermedial contexts and imperialism from a historical point of view. The conference also touches on different media´s specific approaches to (post)colonialism, e.g. in children´s literature, children´s films, picture books, young adult novels, massmedia and childhood culture. Keynotes are Lynne Vallone från Rutgers university, USA och Maria Nikolajeva, Cambridge. Lecturers come from the USA, Reykjavík, Oxford, Cambridge, Maastricht, Tilburg, Amsterdam, Aarhus and Kristiansand and all of them have worked with postcolonial theory and postcolonial history in different arenas. They are giving lectures on themes like expeditions to the North Pole, Buffy the Vampire Slayer from a postcolonial perspective and representations of Africa in youth literature.
Participation is free, but participants are asked to register. It is also possible to attend only parts of the programme, however this should be mentionned when registering. Meals have to be booked separately. Please contact elisabeth.westlund@vxu.se for practical matters or for general questions astrid.surmatz@vxu.se.
The symposium will among other things serve as a preparation for a new network of post-colonial and multicultural children's literature and media, together with the Universities of Cambridge, Oxford, Leuven, Maastricht, Amsterdam, Frankfurt and Växjö.
In cooperation with the Postcolonial forum, Forum for intermedial studies and LUN.