Page for Postgraduate Events and Research in English Literature
For this festive edition of Works Loved, we’ll be sharing texts that explore festivities, celebrations, and other occasions that are – or should be – joyful. All types of texts, phrases, and festive figures are welcome, from Scrooge to Santa – or feel free to change the tone with a non-festive favourite. Reflections: We had … Continue reading “Works Loved: Festive Favourites (Wed 11 Dec)”
To show solidarity with the UCU strike action over changes to the Universities Superannuation Scheme (USS) and universities’ failure to make improvements on pay, equality, casualisation and workloads, the Contemporary Theory Reading Group will be running a Teach-Out on the 3rd of December at 3-4pm in the Bristol Pear. The reading for this week has … Continue reading “Teach Out – Uses of Theory: The Dirty Version (Dec 3rd)”
On the first day of UCU industrial action at UoB, we’re taking Page Breaks to a teach out and discussing ‘literary activism’. Join us at the S’Oak, in Selly Oak, and see the full schedule of teach outs here: https://tinyurl.com/BUCUteachouts
On 20 November, we’ll be reading a longer work than usual: James Baldwin’s 1956 novel Giovanni’s Room. Sometimes described as Baldwin’s most controversial fiction, Giovanni’s Room explores home, nationality and sexuality in the setting of postwar Paris.
This week we will be reading the ‘Introduction’ from Rey Chow’s Sentimental Fabulations, contemporary Chinese Films: Attachment in the Age of Global Visibility. In this piece of film criticism, Chow explores the Fifth Generation filmmakers of mainland China within the context of Western cinema. Drawing heavily on both the Taiwanese New Wave and Hong Kong … Continue reading “Rey Chow – Sentimental Fabulations (Nov 19th)”
Stephen King is one of the authors whose work we encountered in our Halloween Works Loved session. This week we’ll discuss his advice on writing a compelling opening sentence. As you’re reading King’s suggestions and examples, you may also think of opening lines that have drawn you into a text – if so, please bring … Continue reading “Page Breaks: Opening Lines (Wed 13 Nov)”
Launching with a first session on 7 November, GOTHICA is a new, interdisciplinary, postgraduate-led reading group interested in the ever-present role of the Gothic in popular fiction and culture.
On what is usually a night full of spirited displays of fireworks, we will be considering the vibrancy of matter itself in the first chapter of Jane Bennett’s ‘Vibrant Matter: A Political Ecology of Things’. This session will be held on November 5th in Arts 119 at 3-5pm, a change from our usual venue of … Continue reading “Jane Bennett – ‘Vibrant Matter’ (Ecocriticism, November 5th)”
For Week 2 of the Critical Theory Reading Group, we will be analysing and discussing Alondra Nelson’s ‘AfroFuturism: Past-Future Visions’. This sessions will take place in the Westmere Lounge at 3-5pm on Tuesday the 22nd of October – snacks and refreshments provided. Nelson engages with innovation and improvisation in the African Diaspora’s histories and Futures. … Continue reading “Alondra Nelson – ‘AfroFuturism: Past-Future Visions’ (22nd of Oct)”
James Baldwin’s essay recounts his brief imprisonment in late 1940s Paris, exploring institutional systems, race, and being American in Europe.
