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ISAS 2003: Arizona

 

Professor Robert E. Bjork and the Arizona Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies of Arizona State University hosted the Eleventh Biennial Meeting of the International Society of Anglo-Saxonists at the Chaparral Suites Resort, Scottsdale, Arizona. Some fifty-one speakers presented work in twenty-four sessions, including several project reports and three plenary speakers. Many of the papers dealt with the conference theme of Conversion and Colonization, as did the plenary lectures: Leslie Webster on "Appropriating the Cultural Landscape: Mind, Body, and Space in the Conversion Period," Allen J. Frantzen on "Drama, Confession, and Conversion in Juliana" and John Blair on "How Christian was early Christian England?" Reports were given on a number of projects: Klaeber's Beowulf (John D. Niles), The Dictionary of Old English: A to F on CD-ROM (Antonette diPaolo Healey), The Prosopography of Anglo-Saxon England Project (David A. E. Pelteret), Santa Crux/Halig Rod: The Cross in Anglo-Saxon England (Catherine E. Karkov and Karen Jolly), The Alfredian Boethius (Malcolm R. Godden), Alfred the Great's Boethius: An Image-Based Electronic Edition (Kevin Kiernan) and The Anglo-Saxon "Formulary" Project (Andy Orchard). The conference featured a mid-week excursion to Sedona, the Grand Canyon, and the Painted Desert, during which several conferees chose to view the Canyon from the sky, while others tested their endurance in the blazing sun by hiking down trails better suited to more sure-footed four-legged species. Receptions were hosted by Robert and Mary Bjork at their home, and by the Richard Rawlinson Center for Anglo-Saxon Studies and Medieval Institute Publications. The conference dinner, generously sponsored by the ASU Vice Provost for Research and the Dean of the College of Arts and Letters, was held at Rawhide Western Town, where conference members were entertained by some Wild West justice meted out to their officers (see the photos following this report).

The Advisory Board met several times to select new officers, implement the new procedures for Advisory Board elections, and consider other business of the society. George Hardin Brown, Matti Kilpio and Donald G. Scragg were accorded honorary memberships. Elaine Treharne was elected to a second and final term as Second Vice-President. Following the newly adopted guidelines (see the Constitution, which is printed in the Membership Directory), the membership had been solicited for nominations prior to the conference. The Advisory board then produced twelve further nominations, two for each soon-to-be vacant seat, and the outgoing members of the Board placed the resulting candidates on a ballot. This ballot was subsequently distributed by mail and e-mail to all members of the society. Two bids to organize the Biennial Conference in 2007 were presented, and after considerable deliberation London was chosen as the venue for the 2007 conference, to be organized by a consortium headed by Jane Roberts and Warwick Gould and hosted by the Institute of English Studies, University of London.

Effective January 1, 2004, the officers of ISAS are:

  • President: Hans Sauer (Univ. München)
  • First Vice President: Jane Roberts (Institute of English Studies, Univ. of London)
  • Second Vice-President: Elaine M. Treharne (Univ. of Leicester)
  • Executive Director: David F. Johnson (Florida State Univ.)

Advisory Board:

  • Mary Blockley (Univ. of Texas at Austin)
  • Rolf H. Bremmer, Jr. (Univ. of Leiden)
  • Thomas N. Hall (Univ. of Illinois at Chicago)
  • John Hines (Cardiff Univ.)
  • Nicholas Howe (Univ. of California, Berkeley)
  • Leena Kahlas-Tarkka (Univ. of Helsinki)
  • éamonn Ó Carragáin (National Univ. of Ireland)
  • Jo Story (Univ. of Leicester)
  • Mary Swan (Univ. of Leeds)
  • Antonette diPaolo Healey (Dictionary of Old English)
  • Malcom Godden (Anglo-Saxon England)
  • R. M. Liuzza (Old English Newsletter)

Advisors whose terms ended December 31, 2003 are Leslie Abrams, Mechthild Gretsch, Catherine Karkov, Simon Keynes and John Niles. Roy Liuzza shifts laterally on the Board from elected member to the representative of the Old English Newsletter.

The 2005 ISAS meeting will take place on August 1–6, 2005, at the University of Munich, hosted by the Faculty of Language and Literature and the department of English and American. The conference theme is England and the Continent. Abstracts for papers should be submitted by October 15, 2004. For further information, visit the ISAS website or contact:

Professor Hans Sauer

Institüt für englische Philologie, Universität München

Schellingstraße 3

D-80799 München

Germany

e-mail: Hans.Sauer@anglistik.uni-muenchen.de

The 2007 meeting will be held at the University of London; the conference theme is "Anglo-Saxon Traces: Her mon mæg giet gesion hiora swæð." For preliminary information, contact:

Professor Jane Roberts

The Institute of English Studies, University of London

Malet Street

London WC1E 7HU

England

e-mail: jane.roberts@kcl.ac.uk

The Advisory Board established procedures for the publication of themed volumes arising substantially from ISAS conferences. The first, edited by Matti Kilpio, will be based on the 2001 meeting at the University of Helsinki; the second, to be edited by Nicholas Howe and Catherine Karkov, will be based on the 2003 Conference at Arizona State University. The Executive Committee will oversee and monitor the production of these volumes.

The Advisory Board approved a change to the membership cycle and dues. Dues are to be raised to $50/£30 for a two-year membership cycle (waged members), or $35/£20 for a two-year membership period (unwaged, graduate students, retired members). The membership package will include a copy of the publication emerging from the ISAS conferences. Current Life members will be allowed to purchase these volumes at cost. Further details on this change will be mailed to each member and made available on the Society's website.

The Advisory Board recommended that ISAS introduce publication prizes for its membership. The prizes, to be awarded every two years, will be awarded to (i) the best article in any sub-field or subject in the discipline, $150; (ii) the best first book about "the languages, literatures, arts, history, or material culture of Anglo-Saxon England," $150; (iii) the best edition (in any medium) of an Anglo-Saxon or Anglo-Latin text, $150. These will be judged by an ad hoc committee, and announced at the Society's conferences. Jonathan Wilcox will chair the first committee. Members may submit publications, in any language, for consideration. For the first round of prizes, to be announced and presented in Munich, nominated articles or books must have been published between May 31, 2002 and June 1, 2005. Nominations, accompanied by a copy of the publication, must be submitted to the Executive Director on or before May 1, 2005, at the address given below.

To join ISAS, send dues ($50 or £30 for regular membership; $35 or £20 for students, unwaged and retired members) for a two-year membership to the International Society of Anglo-Saxonists, along with professional name, title, e-mail, and mailing address (no more than six lines) to:

Prof. David F. Johnson

Executive Director, ISAS

Dept. of English

Florida State Univ.

Tallahassee, FL 32306

USA

e-mail: djohnson@english.fsu.edu

For further details about ISAS, visit the Association's website at http://www.ISAS.us

Photos below were taken by Tom Hill and David Johnson

David Johnson, Executive Director of ISAS, and Robert Bjork, President of ISAS, brought to justice at last.

Jo Story gloats with Jon Wilcox over his retirement as editor of OEN.

Andy Orchard, Samantha Zacher, Robin Norris.

Terry Hoad, Walter Goffart, Roberta Frank, Jill Frederick, Patrizia Lendinara, George Brown, Ursula Schaefer, and Sarah Higley poolside, doing their best to stay hydrated in the Arizona sun.

Michael Drout, Allen Frantzen.

Joyce Hill attempting to hold a serious conversation with Donald Scragg while distracted by the latter's lei.

Tom Hall, Carol Braun Pasternack, and Jana Schulman embarking on a nocturnal hayride.

Helen Damico, Patricia Hollahan, and Jane Toswell.

Paul Szarmach, George Brown, Katherine O'Brien O'Keeffe.

Mary Dudy Bjork, Patrick Conner, Paul Szarmach (rear, in hat), Gabi Sauer, Hans Sauer, David Johnson, Robert Bjork, on the conference excursion to the Grand Canyon.