Published by the Department of English and Comparative Literature at the American University in Cairo, Alif, welcomes articles in the field of American area studies illuminating new trends in historiography, anthropology, arts, sociology, and literatures. Submission deadline: October 1, 2009.
Alif: Journal of Comparative Poetics Call for Articles
Nearly fifty years ago, Michael Harrington's The Other America brought much-needed attention to poverty in the United States. Borrowing its title from Harrington's now-classic study, this issue of Alif similarly expands critical understandings of America beyond its frequent equation with the USA and its official state. This issue explores the less visible "Americas" in the hemispheric sense, considering less well known--but no less central--social, political, artistic, and literary dimensions of the United States, while seeing Canada, Central and South America, and the Caribbean as vital to the conversation. The concepts of pluralism and ethnic literature in the Americas are highlighted and the cross-fertilization of cultures (African, Asian, European, and Native American) explored, all with the aim of providing a more expansive vision of the Americas that includes internal and external cultures of opposition. The issue presents versions and visions and variations of America that seek to interrogate national identity and broaden established definitions while suggesting new modes of inquiry into the United States as a place in conversation with others in the world.
This issue of Alif welcomes articles in the field of American area studies illuminating new trends in historiography, anthropology, arts, sociology, and literatures. Alif invites original contributions on cinema, visual culture, literature, music as well as critical and social theory.
Alif is a refereed, annual, multi-lingual, and multi-disciplinary journal published by the Department of English and Comparative Literature at the American University in Cairo. Each issue revolves around a theme or a problematic, bringing together the views and approaches of scholars from all over the world.
Alif has been selected by MLA as a distinguished journal and has been made available electronically through JSTOR academic service (www.jstor.org).
Submission instructions: Articles should be between 15 and 30 double-spaced pages (5000-10000 words) and may be submitted in Arabic, English, or French by electronic mail or on a CD together with a hard copy (on Microsoft Word, saved as "rich text format"), together with an abstract of 100 words and a biographical note on the contributor. If the article is in Arabic, the article must be typed on Nashir Sahafi (version 6 or less) or QuarkXpress (version 4 or less) and submitted on a Macintosh diskette, saved as text only (for further clarification contact Alif's office). Articles should be furnished with manual endnotes (not electronic footnotes) or with parenthetical notes.
Alif will appreciate hearing in advance of the projected title of the contributor's article and receiving a short abstract (300 words) as soon as convenient--and no later than October 1, 2009, in order to plan for a balanced issue. Please include your mailing address, fax and telephone number, and your electronic mail address whenever possible.
Correspondence:
Alif: Journal of Comparative Poetics
Dept. of English and Comparative Literature
American University in Cairo
113, Kasr Al Aini Street
PO Box 2511, Cairo 11511, Egypt
Fax: (+ 202) 2795-7565
Tel.: (+ 202) 2797-5107
E-mail: alifecl@aucegypt.edu
Guest editor (English): Ira Dworkin idworkin@aucegypt.edu
http://www.aucegypt.edu/academics/dept/eclt/alif
