ℌello again, all! Additional calls for papers have come to the Society's attention, and, with the deadline nearing, a reminder about our own sessions at the coming International Congress on Medieval Studies seems in order. So:
Rachel Warmington with ISSM (and with which the Society is cosponsoring a session) reminds readers of a few sessions of interest at the Congress. They are
- Animals in Medievalism (#8869)- While many human tropes have been considered in medievalism studies, thus far we have not seen any examination of the role of animals. This session seeks responses that consider animals in many forms—as pets, as familiars, as symbols, as representations, as commercial objects, as main characters or versions of main characters, as costumes, as images, as subjects. What is the function of animals within medievalism? What roles do they play, and how do these roles reflect, or not reflect, their medieval antecedents? Are these medievalized animals affected by contemporary ideas about animal rights and/or ideologies of identity?
- Medievalisms in Dr. Who (#8870)- The International Society for the Study of Medievalism has now sponsored several years of successful sessions on Science Fiction Medievalisms. In focusing on the long-running television program Dr. Who, we seek to expand consideration of the use of the medieval in a variety of futuristic spaces. Since the show has been popular for many years, featuring different casts all travelling through time, the discussion of medievalism in the corpus is past due. We invite papers that explore any aspect of medievalism in the program, whether in narrative, genre, aesthetics, story telling, references, etc.
- Medievalisms in the Americas (#8864)- This session puts together discussions of North American medievalisms (including Canada) and South and Central American medievalisms. The topic of how fascination with the medieval was transferred to the Americas deserves scholarly attention. The similarities among those transfers could be tracked along with the emergence of what for example Altschul called “medieval Brazil,” although discussions might also consider other medievalist iterations, including the use of the nation’s pre-colonial past or contemporary culture. The reasons behind introducing medievalism in the Americas could also be scrutinized; what is the value of this kind of inquiry?
- The Death(s) of Robin Hood (1): The Death of Robin Hood (2026) (A Roundtable) ( #8230 ) [Cosponsored]- This roundtable will explore the representation of Robin Hood’s literal and metaphorical death(s) in the A24 film The Death of Robin Hood (2026). We are particularly interested in papers that focus on Robin’s character arc in this film and his death through the focused analysis of such themes as medievalism, ageism, ableism, religion, life-after-death, community, others and othering, death and dying, the environment and space, and representations of violence. We welcome perspectives that place this film in dialogue with other media works that depict Robin Hood’s death and explore any of the above themes.
- The Death(s) of Robin Hood (2): Literary Representations (#8229) [Cosponsored]- This session seeks papers that examine Robin Hood’s death in medieval and post-medieval poems, plays, novels, and other written texts. Robin is not the once-and-future king, but in many ways he is the once-and-future king of the (good?) outlaws as his character often dies and is reborn in successive works. Papers that examine narratival concerns, religious themes, historical contexts, cultural frameworks, ethical implications, and theoretical and philosophical constructs of Robin Hood’s death and dying are most welcome.
- "Will It Bardcore?": Explorations of Medievalist Music (A Roundtable) (#8459) [Cosponsored with the Society]- During discussion at the 2026 ICMS session "Off of the Printed Prose Page," Dr. Elizabeth Perry asked the question of various songs: “Will it bardcore?” Although offered partly in jest, the question prompts consideration of what bardcore is, really; what makes for “good” bardcore; what are representative examples of the genre; how the genre borrows from and interacts with Tolkien and other neo/medievalisms; and what purposes and functions are served by the genre? The proposed roundtable offers space for such considerations.
She also points out a CFP for MAMO 2027 (about which the Society has commented before), with a newly extended deadline of 20 September 2026. Titled "(Post)national medievalisms," the session description is "In her discussion of white supremacism in New Zealand context Louise D’Arcens argues against seeing this medievalism, and medievalism in general, in its national context. Following this line of thinking, what could then be argued is that medievalisms have already transcended their nationalistic limitations. On the other hand, there remain medievalist phenomena, such as the United Empire Loyalists origins of English Canadian medievalism postulated by M.J. Toswell, that are firmly situated within their national background. This session of papers is intended to put together these two perspectives: that medievalisms can be very much postnational, since they increasingly transcend the limits of one country and one culture, and that discussion of further national medievalisms is still very much relevant to medievalism studies." Abstracts of 250 words should go to annaczarnowus@op.pl.
Too, and again, the Society is sponsoring sessions at the Congress. In addition to the cosponsored bardcore session described above, we'd love your submissions for the following:
- A Porlockian Perspective: Interruptions in Post-Tolkien Medievalist Works (#8458, paper panel, hybrid session)- The International Porlock Society, long meeting at the ICMS, is dedicated to the study and practice of academic interruption. While the Porlock Society focused its attentions on the works of Sidney and Spenser (himself an early medievalist), it is the case that interruption abounds, both in medieval literatures (witness Arthurian legend) and in the medievalist and neomedievalist media that emerge from them. The proposed session investigates the instances, forms, and functions of interruption in works of post-Tolkien neo/medievalist literatures and other media.
- Continued Lessons from the Professor: Borrowings from Tolkien, 2020+ (#8457, paper panel, online session, cosponsored with Tolkien at Kalamazoo)- The stated goal of The Tales after Tolkien Society is the investigation of medievalism in popular culture; it has in its very name a commitment to conducting those investigations through the lens of Tolkien and his works. With the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent upheavals, it may well be that the focus which this lens offers has changed. Papers for the session should look at shifts in use of Tolkien’s works, sources, and methods in the years 2020 and following, speaking to the “after” portion of the Society’s name with particular emphasis.
- Medievalism Outside Academe (#8963, roundtable, hybrid session, cosponsored with Lone Medievalist)- Most faculty are contingent. The numbers of contingent faculty are dwarfed by those who, after spending years adjuncting, sought other careers yet still feel called to intellectual life. More yet did not pursue lives in academe but still have insights into the medieval, medievalist, and neomedievalist, as well as how they function. The proposed session looks to present perspectives on the medieval, medievalist, and neomedievalist from outside traditional academic structures, calling back to Richard Utz’s ICMS 2015 plenary lecture: medievalist work began as an amateur endeavor. Bringing in nonprofessional, underrepresented, outside perspectives remains worth doing.
Submissions to all Congress sessions are due 15 September 2026 and have to go in via Confex, https://icms.confex.com/icms/2027/prelim.cgi/Home/0. We hope to see you at the 'zoo!
