At a climactic point in Part Four of The Claim of Reason (1979), the American philosopher Stanley Cavell arrives at the striking conclusion that "romanticism opens with the discovery of the problem of other minds, or with the discovery that the other is a problem, an opening of philosophy." Cavell's account of how Romanticism opens is not historical in orientation, but rather offers a rich conceptual, aesthetic, and ethical site of concern that both interrupts and generates his life's work— thus presenting an opening for scholars and students of the Romantic Period to think the subject of Romanticism anew in studying (with) Cavell. The essays in this volume seek to provide the fullest account to date of Cavell's prompting by Romanticism in light of his powerful record of engagement with British and European Romantic texts: a body of literature on which Cavell has performed several bravura readings.
Cavell's writings and distinctive philosophical approach have garnered an increasing amount of sustained attention over the past several years, particularly since the publication of Philosophy the Day after Tomorrow (2005) and Little Did I Know (2010). Yet beyond his major American subjects of Thoreau and Emerson, there is still little published scholarship that engages Cavell's thought at extended, close range with Romanticism as the moment that matters so much him: the "perfectionist" opening that comes after religion, but before philosophy. The present collection—with essays (in suggested reading order) by Emily Sun, Paul Fry, Eric Lindstrom, Eric Walker, and Anne-Lise François, and a substantial Afterword by Joshua Wilner—hinges between the efforts to record Cavell's engagement with British Romantic texts and to stage new interventions.
Romantic Circles, a pioneering website focused on Romantic era literature and culture, is seeking a new Editor of its Reviews section. Now in its 18th year, Romantic Circles receives nearly 400,000 unique visits from users in 190 countries, who view a total of approximately 800,000 pages per year.
The Editor of Reviews will be working with our editorial team to expand the scope of reviews to include not only monographs, but also digital humanities projects and research tools. Under consideration, as well, is a more informal section of reviews that would cover representations of Romanticism in popular media.
Please send nominations, including self-nominations for RC Review Editor, to rc-geneds@umd.edu. Nominations should include the candidate's contact information.
RC is pleased to announce the latest update to The Letters of Robert Bloomfield and his Circle. Tim Fulford and his co-editors have added annotated texts of newly-discovered letters by Robert and his brothers George and Nathaniel. Fragments of a MS poem by George are also presented. Altogether, the new texts illuminate the rapidly-changing print culture of the early nineteenth century. They show the relationship between labouring-class writers and their gentlemen patrons to have been more complex than previously thought; they reveal the power of the reviewing journals; they exhibit the political divisions within the rural working class, even in times of scarcity and protest. And they provide fascinating contemporary portraits of figures including Cobbett, Fox, and the Duchess of Devonshire. Among the works discussed are Robert's third collection Wild Flowers and Nathaniel's Essay on War.
See new letters 80a, 180a, 205a, 302a, 339a, 349a, 360a, 412, and, in the Contextual Materials section, George's fragment "Crude Thoughts."
Featuring essays by leading art historians, literary scholars, and historians of antiquarianism, this volume sheds new light on Romanticism's material and visual cultures, and reveals the important role that antiquarian discourses and practices played in shaping neoclassicism, the sublime, and other major concepts of the Romantic period. In this moment, antiquarianism became all the more important, as increasingly specialized study of historical periods and different types of objects shaped the networks that linked antiquaries, engravers, and publishers with a public eager to experience in detail the customs and manners or material culture of the past.
In order to mark the bicentenary of the composition of 'Imitation of Spenser' (1814), John Keats's earliest known poem, the Keats-Shelley Memorial Association and the Keats Foundation are jointly hosting a day academic seminar on 31 October, Keats's birthday, at the Keats-Shelley House in Rome.
Proposals for papers are invited on any subject focusing on, or relating to, Keats's early poems, from 'Imitation of Spenser' itself up to the publication of his first full-length volume, Poems (1817).
Papers discussing poems by Keats published later than 1817 may, of course, be accepted, but only by means of comparison with earlier poems. Papers may be given in English or in Italian, and abstracts accepted in either language.
Deadline for submission of abstracts (c. 200 words): 30 June 2014. Registration fee €25.
Liverpool University Press is one of the UK's oldest scholarly publishers and one of its youngest, being both 115 years old and 10 years old in April 2014. The latter anniversary marks the relaunch and rebirth of the Press, an event that it is celebrating by making all of its journal content, including Essays in Romanticism and The Byron Journal, available for free online during the month of April. Essays in Romanticism is the official journal of the International Conference on Romanticism and publishes articles on all aspects of Romanticism. It encourages work using emergent or innovative perspectives and approaches, and that which is situated within an interdisciplinary and comparative framework. With over 40 years' worth of content available and a wide international readership, the The Byron Journal is the leading forum for authorities on Byron. The journal publishes scholarly articles and notes on all aspects of Byron's writings and life, and on related topics. Content is available now simply by visiting our http://liverpool.metapress.com site, with no further setup required. Please feel free to share this information with colleagues, your institutional library contact, or any other interested parties.
Many folks on the NASSR listerv are posting their rememberances of Professor Butler as well.
Teachers of all ranks may submit teaching materials. Exemplary submissions consider how teaching revivifies Romanticism, in any of its myriad forms. Digital innovations are encouraged but certainly not required. For a list of previous winners and their syllabi, see the Pedagogy section of the Romantic Circles website: http://www.rc.umd.edu/pedagogies/contest#previous.
Finalists will be chosen via author-blind peer review to give a short presentation at a special panel at this year's conference in Washington DC, and their syllabi will be published on the Romantic Circles Pedagogies website. The winner, chosen after the panel, will receive a $250 award and recognition at the NASSR banquet. For more information on the contest see the NASSR 2014 website: https://blogs.commons.georgetown.edu/nassr2014/pedagogy-contest/.
Please send a document of between 3-5 pages to nassrpedagogycontest@gmail.com by April 2, 2014. Please include a cover letter with identifying information, which should be left off all other documents. Initial queries and questions are welcomed.