“That Sounds Funny”: CFP for ALA “Music and the American Literary Imagination” symposium (American Literature Association symposium: "Music and the American Literary Imagination")
Nashville, TN
Organization: American Humor Studies Association
Event: American Literature Association symposium: "Music and the American Literary Imagination"
“That Sounds Funny”: CFP for ALA “Music and the American Literary Imagination” symposium
The American Humor Studies Association (AHSA) invites submissions for a proposed panel for the American Literature Association (ALA) 2027 symposium “Music and the American Literary Imagination,” to be held January 28-30, 2027, in Nashville, TN.
For hundreds of years, humor has been an indelible element of American popular music as well as literature. This AHSA-sponsored, non-guaranteed panel seeks proposals that consider the connections between American humor, American music, and American literature. We invite submissions on any genre, period, or place, including papers that explore the fuzzy boundaries of what it means to be "American." We are especially interested in presentations that examine humor practices in the American South; for example, proposals might consider the use of humor in Southern rap, children's author Shel Silverstein's role in shaping the "outlaw country" sound, or the recent rise of right-wing "humorists" in Nashville. Together, the presentations constituting this panel will explore the pitfalls and possibilities of the imbrication of music, humor, and American literary culture.
Please send a 250-word abstract and a brief biography by October 15, 2026, to AHSA Vice President Benjamin Schwartz at bs8959@princeton.edu. All panel participants must be AHSA members before the ALA conference opens on January 28, 2027.
The Constance Rourke travel award is available for graduate students on a panel. The award varies between $100 – $300 (depending on AHSA funds and the number of applicants) to help defray the cost of attending conferences with AHSA-sponsored panels. We also remind everyone that AHSA has in place a mentoring program to help emerging scholars prepare an essay for publication. Presenting at ALA can be the first step to being published.
Benjamin Schwartz