For a panel on "Interrogating Middle Class Identity," already
accepted for the American Studies Association Conference (Oct
31-Nov 3, 1996, I am seeking a panelist to replace an original
participant who has a schedule conflict. The panel as a whole
historicizes and theorizes various models of middle-class
identity in the 20th century.
In order to maintain the original balance and diversity of the
panel, however, I would prefer a paper that focuses on 1) the
meaning/significance of middle class identity in the African
American community, 2) the ways in which various models of
middle-class identity are complicated by African-American
history, or 3) some other aspect of this intersection of race and
class. Theoretical/historical overviews or case studies from any
discipline or interdisciplinary approach and in any period of the
20th century will be considered.
The replacement has to be approved by the Program Committee as
well as myself, so I need proposals ASAP. Persons already on the
ASA 1996 program are not eligible. Please email or fax a
250-word abstract and 1-2 page vita to me by Friday, April 12.
The abstract for the panel as a whole is below. Please forward
this announcement to interested colleagues. Questions? email
me!
Jennifer Parchesky
jparches@acpub.duke.edu
Literature Program
Duke University
Box 90670
Durham NC 27708
Phone: (919)687-0218
FAX: (919)684-3598
ABSTRACT: "Interrogating Middle Class Identity" The study of
class in America has long been complicated by contested
definitions of the middle class and by the pervasive myth that
America is a middle-class society. This panel investigates the
ideologies of the middle class in twentieth-century America, the
material conditions of class identity, and the frequent tensions
and contradictions between them. Panelists examine what being
"middle-class" means in different historical and cultural
contexts, and how and why Americans come to claim or repudiate
middle-class identity. The first two papers historicize the
conditions for and ideological consequences of American
middle-class consciousness in its emergent and declining stages;
the third suggests how the history of black middle class identity
illuminates contemporary concerns [THIS WILL BE REPLACED BY
APPROPRIATE NEW PAPER]; and the final paper reconsiders the
usefulness of various models of class within contemporary policy
debates.