“James Joyce is quite wrong headed. Anyhow, with his wilfulness, he has made novel reading into a fair imitation of penal servitude…” (ARNOLD BENNETT on ULYSSES)

Keynote Speakers: Professor Patrick Collier (Ball State University), Dr Beci Carver (University of Exeter)

This one-day conference intends to examine 1922 looking at the cultures and writers associated with this significant year, in all their forms and geographical spread. It will consider the year holistically, considering cultural and personal interactions and how they relate to the intellectual work of modernism. The conference is designed to bring the year into clearer focus with interdisciplinary contributions from politics, history, science, economics, music, literature, book history and visual culture and areas that have fallen outside the purview of traditional modernism. Some questions the conference would like to approach include: how has modernism impacted on the study of artistic cultures? How far did recent history shape social attitudes? How did the political and economic uncertainties in 1922 permeate different cultures? Was 1922 important for anything more than modernism itself?

Panels:

  • Ephemeral Modernism
  • Poetry and Performance
  • High Modernism
  • Publishing and Trade

Other highlights include:

  • University of Reading Special Collection and Archive exhibition of materials
  • The Handheld Press will showcase a selection of texts for attendees to browse and purchase on the day

The full conference programme can be found here. The conference will take place in-person at the University of Reading, London Road Campus, with some blended panels. Please note that the schedule is subject to change according to University COVID-19 guidance and advice. We will inform all speakers and attendees of any changes in advance of the conference as soon as possible.

Registration is free but places are limited and will be available on a first come, first served basis. Lunch and refreshments will be available to purchase on-site. Register here.

If you have any questions, please contact the organisers, Benjamin Bruce (b.bruce@pgr.reading.ac.uk) and Domonique Davies (domonique.davies@pgr.reading.ac.uk)

Supported by the Centre for Book Cultures and Publishing and the Samuel Beckett Research Centre at University of Reading.