We invite papers on Trauma and Literature for the 39th annual meeting of the CEA. While human suffering has been a subject of literature from its earliest time, modern understanding of trauma, including its manifestations and the human response to them, offers a more thorough understanding of these texts than has historically been available to the critic.

Topics can include, but are not limited to:
„X The representation of trauma in a literary text and the relevance of this representation to the understanding of trauma at that historical moment
„X The effect of greater cultural trauma on the representation of personal trauma and/or suffering
„X The relationship between an author¡¦s biography and the treatment of trauma within a text
„X Structural representations of trauma
„X The pedagogical benefits of applying trauma theory to literary texts (such as creating new avenues into a text)

Proposals should be submitted via the online database at http://english.ttu.edu/cea/conftool by November 1st, 2007.

When you submit your proposal, you may use a pull-down menu to indicate your topic. Indicate at that pull-down menu that your submission should be directed to me, Brooke McLaughlin Mitchell, chair of the Trauma and Literature panel. You may contact me with questions at bmclaugh_at_wingate.edu, but also please remember that I cannot directly accept any proposals.

To preserve time for discussion, CEA limits presentations to 15 minutes.

All presenters must become members of the College English Association by January 1, 2008. For membership information, contact Joe Pestino at jpestin5_at_naz.edu

For more information about CEA, the general conference theme, or other special sessions, please consult the CEA web site ¡V http://www2.widener.edu/~cea/