Edited by A. Robert Lee and Chad Weidner

Call for Papers: The Mississippi: Soundings on America’s Arterial River

Introduction and Scope:

The Mississippi River, often regarded as America’s central artery, has been instrumental

in shaping the nation’s geography, culture, and history. This edited volume, The

Mississippi: Soundings on America’s arterial River, aims to explore the river’s vast influence,

tracing its course from the headwaters at Lake Itasca in Minnesota to its

expansive delta at the Gulf of Mexico. Through a multidisciplinary

approach—encompassing geography, ecology, history, culture, and literature—we

invite contributors to examine the river’s profound impact.

Core Inquiries:                            

1. Location. How exactly do we locate the Mississippi inside the wider geography of

America – its route north to south, its position through the various states, its spatial

relationship to the land, its connection to climate and irrigation?

2. Myth and Identity: In what ways do the myths, legends, and popular representations

of the Mississippi River contribute to contemporary understandings of American

identity? How do these narratives compare and contrast with the historical experiences

of Indigenous peoples and Afro-American communities along the river?

3. Global River Comparisons: How can comparative studies of the Mississippi River

with other major world rivers and their deltas, such as the Nile, Amazon, and Yangtze,

offer fresh insights into the river’s role in global trade, cultural exchange, and

environmental stewardship? What lessons can be drawn from these comparisons to

address contemporary challenges facing the Mississippi?

4. Ecological Narratives: How have the diverse ecological zones along the Mississippi

River—from the Upper Mississippi headwaters to the expansive delta of the Lower

Mississippi—shaped distinct environmental narratives and influenced human

interactions, land use, and conservation efforts throughout its course?

Topics may include but are not limited to:

* Geography of the Mississippi: Upper, Middle, and Lower Mississippi; Lake Itasca to

Gulf of Mexico

* Ecological Mississippi: River ecosystems and environments

* Indigenous Mississippi: Anishinaabe naming, settlements, and Native histories

* Sold Down the River: Afro-American history, slavery’s legacy along the river

* Colonial and Explorer Mississippi: Spanish, English, French explorations

*Civil War Mississippi: Strategic importance during the war

*Trade Routes and Steamboats: Navigation, commerce, and steamboat development

* Mississippi River Bridges and Crossings: Engineering and cultural significance

* Crossing Through Ten States: Influence on towns, cities, and habitations

* Literary Mississippi River: From Melville and Twain to Faulkner. Contemporary

authorship.

* Mississippi as Myth: Cultural mythology, symbolism, and popular references

* Weather and the Mississippi River: Impact of floods, storms, heat, and freezing

conditions

* Environmental Justice: Ecological challenges and impacts on communities

*The Mississippi in Visual Art: Artistic depictions of the river

* Cinematic Mississippi: Film portrayals and public perceptions

*Delta Blues: Cultural and musical legacies of the Mississippi Delta

*The River as Refuge: Migration, escape, and refuge narratives

Submit a 250–300-word abstract summarizing your chapter’s main thesis,

analytical framework, and cultural or historical context. Include 3-5 keywords that

capture the primary subjects or areas of inquiry to arobertlee24@gmail.com and

chadweidner@gmail.com by 1 December 2024.

* Abstract Submission Deadline: December 1, 2024

* Full Chapter Submission Deadline: May 15, 2025

* Feedback: 1 July 2025

* Revised Chapter Submission Deadline: September 1, 2025

* Robert Lee is a British scholar, formerly of the University of Kent, UK, and Nihon University, Tokyo. His books include Designs of Blackness (1998, 25^th Anniversary Edition, 2020), Multicultural American Literature: Comparative Black, Native, Latino/a and Asian American Fictions 2003, American Book Award), Modern American Counter Writing (2010), and Native North American Authorship: Text, Breath, Modernity (2022).

 * Chad Weidner is an American/Belgian scholar specializing in ecocriticism and the  Beat Generation. His books include Greening Bohemia: The Environmental Arc of Beat Generation Literature, Fractured Ecologies (2020), and The Green Ghost (2016). He co-founded the European Beat Studies Network and lectures on film, media and rhetoric in the Netherlands.