A session sponsored by the Association for the Advancement of Scholarship and Teaching of the Medieval in Popular Culture for the Medieval & Renaissance Area of the Mid-Atlantic Popular & American Culture Association
2019 Annual Conference of the Mid-Atlantic Popular & American Culture Association
Pittsburgh Marriott City Center Hotel, Pittsburgh, PA
7-9 November 2019
Proposals due by 30 June 2019
The “unofficial” theme of the 2019 Annual Conference of the Mid-Atlantic Popular & American Culture Association is “Pittsburgh: Zombie Capital of the World” in honor of George A. Romero and his 1968 film Night of the Living Dead. However, Romero was a prolific filmmaker, and medievalists have another reason to commemorate him and the city he often worked in. In 1981, Romero released the innovative film Knightriders, which he filmed in and around Pittsburgh. It depicts a band of performers—modern-day knights on motorcycles—reenacting and reviving aspects of the Arthurian legend and other medieval stories in a contemporary setting. Now nearly forty years old, the film offers an interesting display of American appropriation and transformation of the medieval, but it remains largely unexplored by scholarship.
Through this session, the Association for the Advancement of Scholarship and Teaching of the Medieval in Popular Culture seeks to encourage new interest in Romero’s neglected film and to offer both reassessments and critiques of the work in anticipation of its fortieth anniversary in 2021. We are especially interested in new insights into how the film might successfully be interrelated into our teaching and research.
Presentations will be limited to 10-15 minutes depending on final panel size.
Interested individuals should, no later than 30 June 2019, notify the organizers of their topic via email directed to MedievalinPopularCulture@gmail.com using “Knightriders Roundtable” as their subject heading. Please send both an abstract of no more than 300 words and an academic biographical narrative of no more than 75 words. Accepted participants will also need create a web account with the Mid-Atlantic Popular & American Culture Association at https://mapaca.net/conference in advance of the deadline. Be advised that roundtable presenters may also present a paper in a regular session of the conference.
Again, please send inquiries and copies of your submissions to the organizers at MedievalinPopularCulture@gmail.com using “Knightriders Roundtable” as the subject heading.
In planning your proposal, please be aware of the policies of the Mid-Atlantic Popular & American Culture Association (available at https://mapaca.net/help/conference/submitting-abstracts-conference).
Further details on the Association for the Advancement of Scholarship and Teaching of the Medieval in Popular Culture can be found at its website: https://medievalinpopularculture.blogspot.com/.
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