I'm forwarding the following call for papers on behalf of the Western
Literature Association.  I understand that Twain was a big draw at last
year's conference in Omaha, NE.  --Jim Leonard

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"Lands of Little Rain: Creative Oases in the Arid West "


October 9-12, 2002
The University of Arizona-- Tucson, Arizona

This land of little rain that generates much controversy over urban
growth, cultural identity and contested borders is the perfect setting
for a lively WLA conference. We invite participants to submit papers
addressing the themes below or Western Literature in general. We
particularly encourage papers that:

--discuss the role of the Southwest in writing and thinking about the
West. Is this the "most" western place because of its
uncompromising land, its multicultural vitality and its complex,
contested borders?
--explore literature, film, and art that address the relationships that
have evolved between the land and the peoples of the arid Southwest,
especially in this time of rapid population growth.
--celebrate and examine the myriad past and present voices that emerge
from the desert. How are the dances between and among
cultures enacted on these landscapes? What are the in-between places for
Southwestern peoples of multiple backgrounds?
--focus on writers whose work has embraced this land of little rain such
as Mary Austin, Edward Abbey, Rudolfo Anaya, Luci
Tapahonso.
--provide interdisciplinary meditations on the cultural geography of
past and present borders, of immigration and border-crossings, of
region.

Proposals for panels should include a brief abstract of each paper.
Individual proposals for papers and presentations should be no more
than one page in length and be submitted by June 15, 2002. Graduate
students who wish to compete for the J. Golden Taylor prize must
submit their full conference-length papers--limit 15 pages--by June 15.

Send all materials to:
Professor Judy Nolte Temple
Women's Studies Department
The University of Arizona
P.O. Box 210025
Tucson, AZ 85721-0025
Phone: (520)621-7338
Fax: (520)621-1533, ATTN: Temple
Email: [log in to unmask]
Website: http://www.coh.arizona.edu/english/WLA2002/

Submissions Deadline: June 15, 2002