This is a call for papers for a proposed special session at the MLA conference 2017 in Philadelphia. Acceptance at the call for paper stage is NOT a guarantee of the session being accepted and running at the MLA 2017.

This proposed special session will explore the relationships and connections between issues in mental health and literature. Submissions for any language dealing with post-1945 literature are welcome. Panelists may consider:

+ mental health in narratives
+ the influence of cultural stereotypes about mental health on literary representations
+ approaches to reading mental health narratives
+ intertextuality and adaptation
+ problems of/in mental health narratives
+ representation vs. cultural perception
+ etc.

Please send your 250-word abstract accompanied by a short biographical note (up to 50 words) by 3 March 2016 to Dr. Isabel Meusen, imeusen@memphis.edu
cfp categories:
african-american
american
childrens_literature
cultural_studies_and_historical_approaches
ethnicity_and_national_identity
film_and_television
interdisciplinary
popular_culture
science_and_culture
twentieth_century_and_beyond