CFP: Reckonings and Re-imaginings

Annual Conference of the Canadian Society for the Study of Comics
York University, Toronto, Canada 
May 27 - 28, 2023
Stichtag: 13.02.2023

The Canadian Society for the Study of Comics invites proposals for presentations and pre-constituted panels and roundtables on any and all aspects of comics, broadly conceived. “Comics” can refer to comic strips, comic books, graphic novels, visual poetry, and other types of graphic narratives. We are also open to proposals that consider adaptations of comics into other media. This year’s conference will be held in person, on the campus of York University, in Toronto, Canada on Saturday, May 27, and Sunday, May 28, 2023, as part of the annual Congress of the Humanities and Social Sciences.

The theme of this year’s Congress is Reckonings and Re-imaginings. In keeping with this theme, we invite proposals for papers, panels, or roundtables that examine how comics and comics studies can challenge dominant colonial historical narratives and can contribute to a reimagining of society and culture more broadly. Proposals could also apply a critical historicist lens to challenge accounts of the comics industry’s past and development. Further potential topics for proposals might include the following:

●        Comics Studies and EDID
●        Reckoning with comics’ past
●        Comics Journalism and social action
●        Re-imaginings of sex and gender in comics
●        Comics and reconciliation
●        Comics and history
●        Utopian and dystopian futures

Please note that this is merely a list of suggestions and is not meant to be prescriptive. We are interested in papers that address all aspects of comics.

Submission process

To submit an application to present an individual paper at the CSSC/SCEBD 2023 Conference, please submit a proposal of 300 words in length, maximum, using this form.

To submit a proposal for a panel or roundtable session that you would like to organize, please complete this form.

All submissions are due by midnight on Monday, February 13. All conference participants must be members in good standing of the CSSC/SCEBD. In keeping with commitments made by the Federation of the Social Sciences and Humanities and the CSSC/SCEBD to support Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Decolonization, registration fees for Black or Indigenous students and community members are waived for the 2023 conference.

As a member of the Federation of the Humanities and Social Sciences, the CSSC/SCEBD is able to nominate one graduate student for the Congress Graduate Merit Award. If you are enrolled in a Master’s or Doctoral program at a Canadian post-secondary institution, please indicate on the proposal form if you would like to be considered for this $500 award.

The CSSC/SCEBD is looking forward to meeting again in person for the first time since 2019. However, given the ongoing pandemic, and in order to protect its members in attendance, the society reserves the right to implement health and safety protocols as necessary.

About the CSSC/SCEBD

The CSSC/SCEBD is a national, bilingual scholarly association that promotes the academic study of comics. Founded in 2010, the CSSC/SCEBD is a venue for Canadian and international scholars to discuss all aspects of comics as an art form and cultural phenomenon. For more information about the CSSC/SCEBD, please see our website: comics-scholars.com.