Editorial

What’s in a name?

As you all will have noticed, the Newsletter has undergone a name change, and has now become American Studies in Britain. There were several reasons for the name change. The main one is that when I as your Editor invite you to submit essays, reports, book reviews, and so forth, I am well aware that for RAE purposes a line on your vita stating that you have published in American Studies in Britain has a somewhat more impressive ring than an item in a mere Newsletter, which, perhaps unfairly, sounds like something cranked out by the local vicar on a mimeo machine. It was thus felt that the new name reflected the expanded character and aspirations of the Newsletter. That said, however, our primary purpose continues to be to provide news of what is happening in Britain in the area of American Studies and to debate issues that are relevant to all of us as Americanists.

Another novelty is that, for the first time, we have accepted advertising; as Editor, my aim is to put American Studies in Britain on an autonomous financial footing, and we are making strides in that direction. We would thus be delighted to accept additional publicity from presses who publish titles related to American Studies. As many of you are actively publishing monographs and articles, and have links with major publishing houses, it would be excellent if you could give your publishers a nudge, and suggest that they contact American Studies in Britain: good for your own book sales, good for your publishers, and good for us. Don’t forget that we reach a readership of more than 500 Americanists in Britain and abroad! And those numbers are on the rise.

Once again, colleagues have outdone themselves in providing items for inclusion in the current issue. As usual, we have news from major American Studies centres across Britain. The Forum column provides debate about Quality Assessment, an issue which is of direct concern to us all. As well, the concerns of postgraduate members of BAAS are discussed. The issue of American Studies at secondary school level merits a section of its own with a report from Derek Murphy. Mick Gidley, Our Man in Europe, gives us a report of the doings of the European Association of American Studies. The usual rubrics (Kudos, New Members, Calls for papers, Letters to the Editor, and To Err is Human) are included as well.

American Studies in Britain also receives books for review, and indeed some reviews are included in the current issue. I am currently compiling a database with the names of potential reviewers and their areas of expertise. If you would like to review books for us, please contact me at S.Castillo@englit.arts.gla.ac.uk.

On the cover of this issue, the one and only Elvis. At this point, I should confess that your Editor once owned a blade of grass, pickled in formaldehyde, allegedly from the lawn of Graceland, on which Elvis is said to have trod. On hearing this, a colleague of mine here in Glasgow said tartly, ‘I hope that’s all he did.’ But it seemed somehow appropriate to grace the first cover of American Studies in Britain with the image of the King.

Glasgow is a busy place these days, and I could never have produced this issue without the help of my Editorial Assistants Marie Tate and Sean Groundwater, simply the best. To them, and to Mark Ward, Dean of the Arts Faculty of the University of Glasgow, my heartfelt thanks.

See you next March in Glasgow!

Susan Castillo, Editor
Department of English Literature
University of Glasgow
Glasgow G12 8QQ

Tel: 0141-330 6393
Fax: 0141-330 4601
Email:S.Castillo@englit.arts.gla.ac.uk

Glasgow 1999

BAAS 1999, Glasgow, 26-29 March 1999

Together with this issue of American Studies in Britain, you will be receiving registration forms for the 1999 conference of the British Association of American Studies, to take place in the Gilmorehill Centre on 26-29 March. Events will kick off with a drinks reception and banquet in the splendidly neo-Gothic Bute Hall. The organisers, headed by Simon Newman, have been inundated with paper proposals from Britain, the US, Italy, Germany, Japan, Turkey, Greece, Bulgaria and China.

In order to allow the maximum number of members to take part, we have opted for parallel sessions, and have limited the number of plenary lectures to four. The plenary lecturers are, in American football terms, an All-Star Lineup: the welcoming speech on Glasgow and American Studies, by Andrew Hook, will be delivered at the opening banquet; the Journal of American Studies lecture will be given by Sacvan Bercovitch and the Plenary Lecture on Politics, by Charles Jones; and the closing lecture, by Peter Parish.

Members will be pleased to know, however, that the conference will not be a case of All Work and No Play. There will be optional excursions to Glasgow, 1999 City of Architecture, to that other really very nice place down the road (I am referring, of course, to Edinburgh), and to Culzean Castle, with its links to Eisenhower. As well, we are planning a ceilidh (pronounced kay-lee) for Saturday night in Queen Margaret’s Hall, where BAAS members can learn or rediscover the delights of Scottish country dancing and shake a tailfeather or two. Glasgow is a wonderfully warm and vibrant city, with marvellous art galleries, museums, concert houses – and of course great pubs and discos, for those who wish to carry out research into local popular culture.

The community of American Studies scholars at the University of Glasgow looks very much forward to welcoming you all to Scotland next March!

Susan Castillo

BAAS AGM

The Annual General Meeting of the British Association of American Studies will be held on Sunday 28 March 1999 at the University of Glasgow.

Agenda

• Elections: Secretary, three committee members
• Treasurer’s Report
• Chair’s Report
• Amendments to the Constitution
• Annual Conferences 2000-2002
• Report of the Publications Subcommittee
• Report of the Development Subcommittee
• Report of the Libraries and Resources Subcommittee
• Report of the Representative to EAAS
• Any Other Business.

Members are reminded that the Treasurer may come to the AGM to propose a change in subscription rates for calendar year 2000.

At the 1999 AGM elections will be held for three positions on the Committee (three year term), for the secretary of the Association (three year term) and for any other offices that fall vacant before the AGM. Current incumbents of these positions may stand for re-election if not disbarred by the Constitution’s limits on length of continuous service in Committee posts.

The procedures for nomination is as follows: nominations should reach the Secretary, Jenel Virden, by 11:00 a.m. on Saturday 27 March. Nominations should be in written form, signed by a proposer, seconder, and the candidate, who should state willingness to serve if elected. The institutional affiliations of the candidate, proposer and seconder should be included. As agreed at the last AGM, candidates should submit a short written statement outlining their background, experience and views on the future of American Studies in the UK.

Amendments to the Constitution

The Committee has considered changes to the Constitution to clarify subscription categories. It wishes to forward these amendments to the membership for their consideration at the AGM.

Current Clause 4.2 to be amended to read:
Each member in categories a, d and f shall also pay the membership subscription to the European Association of American Studies, the amount to be collected and forwarded by the Treasurer of the Association.

Annual BAAS Conference – Swansea 2000

Preparations are already underway for the British Association of American Studies Annual Conference for the year 2000, to be hosted by the Department of American Studies at the University of Wales Swansea from April 6-9. Though no theme or themes for the Conference have yet been announced, we hope that the timing of the Conference will help celebrate the (arguably) millenial year, and highlight the historical and ongoing cultural and social ties between Wales and America. Plans are also being made to include cultural events and countryside excursions that will capitalise on the strengths of the American Studies community in Swansea and throughout Wales and the rich cultural heritage and natural beauty of the area. More details will be announced at a later date, but in the meantime questions, comments and suggestions should be directed to Michael McDonnell, Conference Secretary, Department of American Studies, University of Wales Swansea, SA2 8PP, or m.mcdonnell@swansea.ac.uk.

BAAS is also interested in attracting bids from institutions wishing to host the 2001 conference. Those wishing to make bids should contact Vivien Miller, Chair of BAAS Conference Subcommittee, School of Humanities & Cultural Studies, Middlesex University, White Hart Lane, London N17 8HR.

FORUM

QAA

In a lecture to mark Manchester’s 40th year teaching American Studies, Dennis Welland traced the origins of the subject at the University to September 1947. A few years later BAAS was formed as the professional association of the subject, and half a century later American Studies is taught in some form in around fifty universities and colleges around the United Kingdom. It was not surprising, therefore, to see that deep consternation at this year’s BAAS AGM at the University of East Anglia when it was revealed that the Quality Assurance Agency consultation document on subject benchmarking had located American Studies as a sub-section of English. An organisation whose decisions will have far-reaching impact in higher education had managed to act in apparent ignorance of the development and character of our subject.

For many BAAS members, the AGM discussion was the first they had heard of the QAA proposal, and the threat that American Studies would be benchmarked by colleagues from outside the field. The reaction from the profession was uniform and strong. BAAS made a formal response to the QAA consultation, but we also acted to try to get the news to every programme and department in the country. Colleagues throughout the country reacted by directing their own responses to QAA, and the effect of these letters was direct and prompt.

The day after the closing date for responses, QAA Chief Executive John Randall invited BAAS to meet him to discuss the way forward. Douglas Tallack and I spent a day at the QAA headquarters with Mr Randall and his colleagues, where we were well received, and the discussion was helpful and positive. A letter from John Randall following these consultations state that, ‘In the light of the points you made about the nature of American Studies Programmes I agree that it is inappropriate for American Studies to be included with English for the purposes of subject benchmarking. Instead we will create a new subject category of Area Studies. This will encompass American Studies and other area studies that are not based primarily on the study of a language.’ Subsequently, and in response to an invitation from QAA, BAAS has nominate Professor Douglas Tallack to the Agency’s working party on Multidisciplinarity and Modularity.

The American Studies proposals generated very significantly more response than any other element of the QAA document. The strength and focus of this mass of letters and faxes proved beyond doubt the coherence and commitment of colleagues around the UK to American Studies, and provided the strong foundation for our discussions with QAA. The credit for any positive change lies with all of you who made it plain to QAA what you thought of the idea that American Studies should be subsumed into English!

The case of QAA indicates that our strong subject can suddenly become fragile in the face of change implemented by unknown organisations. A time of considerable reform in educational process is one when we need to be particularly aware of these threats. Experience makes it clear that when organisations without close knowledge of our multidiciplinary and interdisciplinary subject are charged with designing and implementing policy change, difficulties may be created, and the profession must be ready to respond firmly.

This response was prompted again this summer by UCAS/HESA proposals to eliminate the UCAS code for American Studies. While admitting the health and attractiveness of American Studies undergraduate programmes, UCAS considered that American Studies comprised elements from political, social, historical or cultural studies within a ‘regional’ context. The course code for any particular programme would then be constructed in the usual way depending on the relative weighting of the components. This vision entirely disregards the potential for American Studies to be an interdisciplinary subject, or, indeed to be an evenly balanced multi-disciplinary subject. The case put by BAAS was recognised by UCAS as ‘cogent and robust’, and once again colleagues responded to the information passed on by BAAS, both by direct representation, and by making sure that many universities responded strongly to the UCAS/HESA consultation document.

BAAS will continue to represent American Studies and Americanists in all the ways it can. Recent contacts aimed at maximising the visibility of the subject have included exchanges with the Arts and Humanities Research Board, and the Committee of Vice-Chancellors and Principals. Our membership of the Co-ordinating Council for Area Studies Associations proved a help when representing the American Studies case to the QAA, and we are now in touch with the Association of Learned Societies in the Social Sciences in order best to represent Americanists in the proposed establishment of an Academy for the Social Sciences.

The Association’ s strength in campaigning for the subject comes from the members. Individual members alert to emerging threats prompt BAAS to make representation, and to circulate important information to the rest of the membership. The membership response is a factor that can convince relevant organisations that here is a point of view that has to be considered seriously.

The next RAE will be of direct interest to many BAAS members, and the Association has registered an interest in nominating people to the RAE panel. We have not been given a deadline for nominations, nor any other information regarding the number of nominations that may be requested, but may I now invite members, department and programmes to contact me as soon as they wish with any names that they would like to be considered for the list of BAAS nominees. When BAAS is called on for nominations it will then be able to react fully aware of its members’ opinions.

Philip Davies, BAAS President

BAAS Postgraduate Agenda

The details, set out below, as well as being the operational basis for me as postgraduate representative is a consultative document in which I seek your advice and suggestions. Replies to the letters section of the newsletter please or you may e-mail me directly:r.j.hinchcliffe@uclan.ac.uk

Making best use of Postgraduate Student Potential Several postgraduate students commented during Norwich and previous conferences that more could be made of the student body within B.A.A.S. in order to activate the organisation at grass roots level and to raise the profile of postgraduates at committee level. Much of this general idea is taken up by the proposals below which are designed to produce the following:

• an increase in the amount of information flowing between individual postgraduates regarding each others research.

• greater organisation and involvement at a local level with both B.A.A.S. postgraduates and other non-member American Studies students attending both graduate and postgraduate courses.

• greater commitment to B.A.A.S. postgraduate conferences in terms of attendance. These are events arranged by postgraduates for postgraduates and are a great opportunity to give papers in a friendly and slightly less formal atmosphere than the main conference.

• More opportunities for postgraduates to communicate with each other through forums proposed within the newsletter and through the BAAS website.

Many of the proposed activities are linked to career opportunities and likely to benefit all those who take part and support the initiatives. It is, therefore, in everyone’s interest to assist in raising the B.A.A.S. postgraduate profile.

Publications

As some of you are no doubt aware getting work published can be extremely difficult. Whilst we have to accept that the competition for essay publication in journals like The Journal of American Studies is very high, there are journals that will look more favourably on postgraduate work. One possible way of increasing postgraduate awareness about the way in which to get work published is to invite members of the editorial team of journals like Borderlines and Overhere to run workshops at postgraduate conferences. Whilst BAAS publications will always want to maintain their already high standards there is no reason why those who have recently graduated and junior lecturers should not submit proposals for the BAAS Paperback Series. Again, it may be possible to get a member of the relevant editorial team to come and offer advice on this at the postgraduate conference.

Conference Fees

In an ideal world there would always be a substantial reduction for Postgraduates attending the BAAS conference, in reality this is not always going to be possible. BAAS does not have the resources available to fund concessions for postgraduates to any great extent. That said, those of us who did attend the conference at Norwich have received a £25 refund. In addition, there is likely to be some reduction for those attending the next conference in Glasgow. All postgraduates, in my opinion, whether they are funded or not, should receive some kind of subsidy but the emphasis must be on the universities themselves rather than BAAS. It is they who must, in the end, have the responsibility for funding their students whether they are giving a paper or simply attending. Those postgraduates not receiving adequate funding should press their supervisors and department heads for proper expenses or at least the formulation of some sort of policy so that students know where they stand. I would greatly welcome any comments on this issue so that I can raise the matter within committee.

Regional Branches/Reading Groups

Many American Studies postgraduates working in the ‘new’ universities or in establishments without an American Studies department may lack the necessary social environment in which their particular discipline can find like minds with which to discuss material and ideas. In order to avoid such isolation and in order to develop American Studies activities at a local level it is proposed that B.A.A.S set up, or assist the setting up, of ‘local’ ‘Regional Reading Groups’ or ‘forums’ that can organise events, lectures and seminars on a regular basis, bring in new members, publicise conferences and form links with other similar affiliations. Whilst developing a camaraderie to combat the traditional isolation of the researcher such groups have the added bonus of providing students with a wealth of information from other disciplines from which to draw upon for their own studies. Any administration of a local grouping will also look good on c.v.s. Regional Branches of BAAS such as Midlands BAAS and the one in the process of getting off the ground in Yorkshire could help to nurture such groups and provide assistance and possible funding for communications and guest speakers. Alternatively, the formation and subsequent organisation of postgraduate reading groups in areas of the country without regional representation could greatly assist in the creation of Regional Branches. Please write in to the newsletter if you are interested in starting up a reading group at your establishment. I believe that thriving local BAAS reading groups and Regional Branches are the best means to broaden the membership of BAAS and should help to raise American Studies in general. Anything that helps to establish an American Studies department as dynamic and attractive to undergraduates as well as postgraduates is very important when people are reporting trends in student course selection toward curricula which are directly vocational.

Conferences

A comment picked up from a postgraduate at Norwich mentioned that in recent conferences we get it too easy in terms of the demands made of us by the themes that the so-called ‘mini-conferences’ ask of us. Whilst acknowledging that the titles for annual conferences have to take into account the number of differing disciplines involved there must be a case for defining the postgraduate conferences more strictly so that the theme is made enticing enough to attract students from outside of the organisation and from students who would not normally attend. Having recently organised the exciting and well attended ‘RePulsions’ conference on the abject I feel that postgraduate conferences could be better attended (and therefore more profitable), better publicised, and project a higher profile than at present. The ‘American Fictions-American Facts’ conference at Central Lancs in December 96 was very successful and well attended and could be used as a template upon which to build even more successful events with even greater participation and organisation from postgraduates. I would be very interested to hear comments on this subject from anyone at Sussex where the next postgraduate conference is to be held in December.

All comments gratefully received.

Richard Hinchcliffe, Postgraduate Representative

American History in Schools

United States’ History at GCE A level – New Developments

The study of American History has become increasingly popular within schools and colleges, in particular at GCSE and GCE A level. With the launch of the new Key Stage 4 GCSE the study of Modern World History has become increasingly popular. Within the Modern World History syllabuses of all examination boards topics such as FD Roosevelt and the New Deal and the Cold War are key elements.

In recent years there has been a growth in popularity of American History at GCE A level. From my own experience at the Northern Examinations and Assessment Board (NEAB) the American History syllabus has doubled its candidature since 1994. However, just as American History has begun to establish itself as a major period of study against periods such as Tudor England and 17th Century Britain it faces a new threat in the form of the present government’s plan to reform the GCE A level system.

From September 2000, ALL schools and colleges will have to teach a completely new set of examinations. These are the Advanced Subsidiary examination and a new A level examination (designed A2). The new AS examination will be set at a level somewhat half way between GCSE and GCE A level. The A2 examination will be at A level standard. All History syllabuses will have to comprise six modules (3 AS and 3 A2).

The major area of change which could affect American History at A level is the proposed requirement that all History syllabuses have a compulsory British History element (30% of the content). This will affect American History because, at present, it is usually taught with European or World History instead of British History. In future all centres may have to teach American History with British History instead of European World History.

Since the first appearance of these government proposals, in January 1997, various attempts have been made to get the Government agency responsible (QCA or Qualifications and Assessment Authority) to change its minds. Several members of BAAS have written to the QCA expressing their concern. Also the Labour Government gave educational institutions the opportunity to comment on these proposals through a questionnaire entitled ‘Qualifying for Success’. Since the publication of ‘Qualifying for Success’ a panel containing representatives from the examination boards (AQA [NEAB and AEB], OCR and Edexcel) have met earlier this year to review the subject criteria on which the new examinations will be based. They have reported to QCA by July 1998. From September-December 1998, a new consultation period is to take place. I am of the understanding that the subject criteria panel were split on the issue of a compulsory British History element but that QCA will include it in the criteria unless they received strong recommendations to the contrary during the consultation.

Therefore, it is important for all those concerned with preserving and extending the study of American History to contact QCA during this period. The person to contact is Gill Watson (0171 509 5567;WatsonG@qca.org.uk) or write to the QCA, 29 Bolton Street, London W1Y 7PD

Derrick Murphy, Chair of the NEAB History Committee and GCE A Level Chief Examiner

Conference – Teaching American History in Schools

A very successful one-day conference on Teaching American History in Schools was held at the University of Nottingham on July 15, 1998. Twenty-One teachers attended. Also present were Robin Berrington, the US Cultural Attache, Phil Davies, Chair of BAAS, Ian Ralston, Director of the American Studies Resources Centre at Liverpool John Moores University, and Douglas Tallack, Head of the School of American & Canadian Studies at the University of Nottingham and chair of the Development Sub-committee of BAAS, under whose auspices and with whose financial support the conference took place.

In the first of three lectures, Tim Lomas, Vice-President of the Historical Association and a member of the Lincolnshire board of Education Inspectorate, discussed the place of History in the school curriculum, especially American History. He suggested that, despite some justified fears regarding the place of History in the school curriculum, there were also grounds for optimism. At the primary school level, for example, History teaching had greatly improved, and it included some American History topics. The National Curriculum had on the whole been to the benefit of History, especially since two of the most prominent Secretaries of State for Education during the formulation stages of the National Curriculum were historians, namely, Sir Keith Joseph and Kenneth Baker. However, there were dangers. Kenneth Clarke had dropped History as a compulsory subject in Key Stage 4. Also, although some American subjects were taught at Key Stage 3, such as the New Deal, the Cold War, blacks and Native American, the emphasis in the History curriculum was strongly on British History. The present situation was fluid, with important curriculum decisions to be made within the next few years, so that there was need for lobbying to press of greater prominence within the National Curriculum for History in general and for American History in particular.

Derrick Murphy, a History teacher at St Ambrose College in Altringham in Cheshire and NEAB Examiner in American History, talked about the 1998 A-level exam in American History and distributed copies of the exam paper. The most popular topics on which pupils had answered questions were the New Deal, Immigration, the Cold War, Civil Rights, LBJ and JFK. Derrick Murphy gave some examples of some gems which illustrated how much the pupils had actually taken in during their classes, such one pupil’s answer about WEB Bu Bois and the Viagra Movement!

Scott Lucas, who teaches American History at the University of Birmingham, gave a version of the splendid presentation which he made at a recent BAAS conference, showing video clips to illustrate the use of video in the teaching of American History. Those of us with educationally-subnormal skills in the art of putting on a video which actually comes up with the picture, sound and subject intended, were filled with admiration for Scott’s dexterity.

Discussion groups were then held, which produced useful feedback. Douglas Tallack had begun lobbying efforts, which will be ongoing. Teachers expressed the need for suitable texts at school level, and discussions on this matter have subsequently opened with Routledge and others.

It was agreed that continuation and ongoing contact could be achieved through the Newsletter of the American Studies Resources Centre. The Cultural Attache subsequently wrote to the conference organiser, stating that he felt that the conference had been very successful ant that this was precisely the type of activity which would have strong support of the US Embassy. Another conference is being planned for next year at the University of Nottingham. The tentative date and subject is Wednesday, July 9, on an American literary text which is on the English A-Level syllabus, examining the work as a literary text and also giving the historical context, with a session also on the teaching of American History in schools as a follow-on from this year’s conference. Anyone who has any ideas regarding the conference or wishes to attend should contact
Peter Boyle
Department of American & Canadian Studies
University of Nottingham
Nottingham NG7 2RD
Email: Peter.Boyle@nottingham.ac.uk

News from American Studies Centres

ASRC Annual Report 1997-98

Introduction

The academic year has seen a number of significant changes to the operations and development of the ASRC that will have major long term implications for its continued success as the national centre for the study of the United States in schools, colleges of further education and increasingly undergraduate programmes. The developments outlined in this report do point to not only continued success in established fields, but also new areas which the ASRC is actively exploring and developing.

ASRC relocation

The year began with the completion of the relocation of the ASRC from the Riversdale Campus of Liverpool Community College to the Aldham Robarts Centre of Liverpool John Moores University. The formal reopeninng of the ASRC took place in early March. At a celebration in the Robarts Centre, the US Ambassador to the UK, Philip Lader, accompanied by JMU Vice Chancellor Professor Peter Toyne and LCC Principal Wally Brown welcomed guests from not only the American Studies community in the UK, but also from representatives of American corporations on Merseyside and other invited guests. Professor Bulford Crites (of the ASRC’s US based Advisory Panel) represented both the City of Palm Desert and the College of the Desert in California. An exhibition of the work of American artist James Fowler Cooper, prepared by Steve and Jeanne-Marie Kenny was also on display. Full reports of the days events were carried by JMU News, American Studies Today, and are also available on the ASRC’s new, upgraded web site. The recognition of the success of the work of the ASRC over the last eleven years was highlighted by Ambassador Lader and was reinforced by a letter of support from President Clinton.

Conferences

In October the ASRC held its annual student conference, again at the Maritime Museum in the Albert Dock, Liverpool. The event was also supported by the British Association for American Studies. Full details of the conference can be found in both the 1998-9 issue of American Studies Today and on the ASRC web site. The conference was a significant success despite a change in speakers brought about at the last moment due to Mike Pudlo’s illness. (Our best wishes go to Mike for a speedy recovery and our thanks to Mike O’Grady for stepping in to help.) The 1998-9 conference details have already been finalised. The topic of the Theory and Practice of American Political Institutions is expected to attract up to 200 students and teachers. (Details of this can again be found on the ASRC web site.) The ASRC also collaborated with Peter Boyle at the University of Nottingham and BAAS on a successful teachers conference on Teaching American History in Schools, which was held in July.

ASRC website

David Forster (ASRC Resources Co-ordinator) deserves particular mention for the vast amount of work he has put in, in a number of important areas. David has not only continued to develop the ASRC’s databases, but also liased with the Connect organisation over the re-design of the ASRC web site. The new site was officially launched by Ambassador Lader at the March celebrations. The site not only contains details of the ASRC’s services, but also links to numerous organisations, conference details and reports, and an extended version of American Studies On Line (the web version of American Studies Today.) The success of the new site has been clear by the statistical returns collated regarding ‘hits’ on the site. From February 5th to July 3rd over 25,000 hits were made from all over the world including the USA, Canada, Russia, Australia, Scandinavia, Africa, Asia and every western European country. This was also reflected in the large number of email requests received for further information. The number of organisations that offer a direct link through the the ASRC’s pages has also greatly increased, through academic sites both in the USA and the UK. The development and further expansion of the site will remain as one of the priorities for the next academic year.

Visitors/Guest Lectures

Jitka Ramadanova and Stepanka Korytova-Magstadt from the American Studies Programme at Zapadoceska University in Pilsden, the Czech Republic, visited the ASRC in September 1997 to study the operations and management of resourcing in the UK, as well as the content of American Studies programmes in British universities. An article by Jitka and Stepanka on American Studies in the Czech Republic is now available on the ASRC web site and this years issue of American Studies Today. Whilst over in the UK for the opening of the ASRC, Professor Buford Crites presented a lecture to American Studies and Environmental Studies Access students at the Riverdale Centre of LCC. Buford gave a lively and informed presentation on the activities of environmental pressure groups who had worked to ensure the passage of the Wilderness Protection Act through the US Congress. Students and staff at JMU and LCC also heard lectures from Linda Berube, a visiting Fulbright Scholar, based in East Anglia, on the issue of American-English. An article by Linda on this topic appears in this years issue of American Studies Today and on the ASRC web site. Our thanks go to both Buford and Linda for the time and effort they dedicated to both institutions.

Information requests

At the beginning of the academic year it was feared that the number of external requests the ASRC would deal with would fall slightly due to the temporary communication problems brought about the relocation of the Centre. However, this has not proved to be the case. The number of requests for information reached 440, which is a slight increase on last years figures. It is important to note that this figure does not include requests from JMU and LCC students, which have also risen considerably. The number of requests for audio visual loans has also increased substantially, particularly in the field of US Government and Politics, due to the links between the ASRC and the Politics Association. Visits to the ASRC for conferences and study days also rose to over 1,600 hours. Again, this does not include JMU and LCC staff/students.

Future Developments

As noted earlier, plans have been finalised for next years student conference. Discussions are also taking place regarding JMU hosting an exhibition of the work of former Fine Art student, Paul Clarkson. Paul has already established a reputation as one of the areas leading young artists who is exploring the African-Caribbean contribution to British society. An article by Paul’s brother, a former Access student at LCC, will be published in the 1999-2000 issue of American Studies Today, on Paul’s work. Work on the Audubon CD-ROM is also continuing, with hopes for a release date in the near future. The ASRC will also be visited by Professor John C Walter, head of the American Ethnic Studies Department and the University of Washington, in the spring and Professor Lenny Quart of City University, New York, in late 1998. Again, as noted earlier, David Forster will be continuing his work on the web site development with the inclusion of additional articles and ‘online’ booking forms for materials. A proposal to develop an academic research wing to the ASRC is also being examined, with the hope that this will come into operation in the near future. Other significant developments are also under discussion and members of the Advisory Panel will be informed of progress ion these and other areas at a later date.

As usual, this report ends with a recognition of all those who have contributed to another successful year. Our thanks go to BAAS for its support of our conferences, the US Embassy for their continued support and encouragement (in particular Sue Wedlake), especially during the preparation for the visit of Ambassador Lader, and all JMU staff (particularly Harry Pepp and John Freeman) who actively contributed to the ASRC’s work and the celebratory events. The hard work of Alan Rawlinson and the Journalism students at JMU on the 1998-9 issue of American Studies Today again deserves the ASRC’s thanks, as do all contributors to the magazine. Finally, we would like to thank all members of the US and UK Advisory Panels, especially Buford Crites, for continuing to support both the year by year functions of the ASRC and its future developments.

Ian Ralston (ASRC Director)
E-mail: I.Ralston@livjm.ac.uk

David Forster (Resources Co-ordinator)
E-mail: D.W.Forster@livjm.ac.uk

Website: http://www.americansc.org.uk

University of Edinburgh: Compton American History Library

University of Edinburgh: Compton American History LibraryThe University is delighted to announce the creation of the Compton American History Library. A room within the History Department has been custom-built to house the fine collection of about 1700 books generously donated by Professor James V. Compton, a former member of staff at both Edinburgh and San Francisco State. As well as reflecting Professor Compton’s research interests in the New Deal and twentieth-century foreign policy, these volumes include books on all aspects of American history from the colonial era through to the present day. Professor Compton is flying in from San Francisco for the opening ceremony on October 29th. Edinburgh is also pleased to announce the appointment of two new lecturers, bringing its compliment of American historians to five. These are Frank Cogliano, who took his PhD at Boston University and is an expert on the Revolutionary era, and Robert Mason, who obtained his DLitt from Oxford, and specializes in recent political history. The five on-staff American historians within the newly-created American History Section within the History Department are complemented by a further five tutors, one of whom, in the Autumn Term, will be Professor Bill Anderson, from SUNY/Suffolk. Professor Anderson will also be an honorary fellow of the university. A prize-winning teacher in New York, he will undertake research into the teaching of American History in Scotland. Most students of American subjects in Edinburgh take single- or joint-honours degrees but, in 1998, the first American Studies MA class graduated (the MA is in Scotland a first degree). For the purpose of this degree, ‘America’ is taken to mean the whole of the Transatlantic land mass, and students may choose courses on Latin American and Canadian subjects, as well as on the United States. A wide variety of courses is offered, and students spend their second year in an American university. The degree is the pioneering achievement of Dr Alan Day. Beginning in the academic year 1999-2000, the university will offer a new MSc degree in American History and Politics (in Scotland, MSc denotes a one-year research degree). This degree involves the departments of Scottish History, History, and Politics. Candidates choose one of the following modules: (a) Early American History, c.1550-1787 (b) The Early American Republic, 1787-1815 (c) Scotland and North America since 1603 (d) Ireland and America (e) American Espionage 1898-1996 (f) Modern American Political History, 1928-1993 (g) Contemporary Issues in American Politics. Early in the Summer Term of 1999, Edinburgh’s Institute for Advanced Studies in the Humanities (IASH) will sponsor a rolling colloquium on the theme The North Atlantic Triangle: Public Myths and Secret Intelligence Services, 1939-1962. At its core will be Professor David Stafford, resident fellow at IASH and a leading authority on British/American/Canadian intelligence history, and Professor Wesley Wark (University of Toronto), recently appointed the official historian of Canadian intelligence and a visiting fellow at IASH. Enquiries about this or about the new MSc degree should be addressed to Professor Rhodri Jeffreys-Jones at the Department of History, University of Edinburgh.
Email: Jeffreys-Jones.Rhodri@ed.ac.uk

University of Edinburgh: North American Studies Seminars

Edinburgh’s North American Studies Committee has been actively promoting and co-ordinating North American Studies seminars offered by different departments across the University. On 23 October, Professor Ken Shepsle, Chair of the Department of Government at Harvard University, spoke on ‘Intemporal Politics.’ This will be followed by ‘Understanding Nationalism Today in Quebec’, by Professor Jocelyn Latourneau (5 Nov), ‘Clinton and the 1998 US Midterm Elections: Presidential Scandal in Political and Historical Perspective’, by Drs. Frank Cogliano, Robert Mason (History, Edinburgh), and Dr. Rob Singh (Politics, Edinburgh), on 11 Nov. Dr. R. A. Anderson of Simon Fraser University will present on 13 Nov. a lecture titled ‘Cowboys and Indians: the Gustafson Lake Incident and Aboriginal Treaty Negotiation in British Columbia.’ Finally, Iain Donald of Aberdeen will discuss ‘The Scottish Press, the Spanish-American War and the Proposed Anglo-American Alliance.’ More seminars are planned for the spring and summer terms. For additional information, please contact Dr. Alex Murdoch, Convener, Edinburgh University American Studies Committee, tel 0131 650 4030

University of Glasgow: Andrew Hook Centre for American Studies

It’s been a busy past few months for Glasgow’s community of Americanists. As a result of Simon Newman’s outstanding work in recruiting, the new taught MPhil in American Studies is up and running with ten students, two of whom are from the US. As well, the Andrew Hook Centre for American Studies is sponsoring, jointly with the US Consulate in Scotland, a series of lectures on topics related to American Studies themes. The first lecture, by Belfast journalist and genealogist Billy Kennedy, dealt with the Scots-Irish on the American Frontier; it was preceded by a reception hosted by Quintiles Scotland. This will be followed on 25 November by Mark MacLachlan’s lecture on the Hollywood Scots (no, not Mel Gibson!), sponsored by Chubb Insurance. Finally, Glasgow’s own Sam Maddra on 16 December will deliver a lecture on the Ghost Dance shirt currently on display in Glasgow’s Kelvingrove Museum, and will discuss the complex issues linked to repatriation of artefacts. More events are planned for next spring. Watch this space!

Susan Castillo

University of Central Lancashire: American Studies

We are very pleased to welcome Ms Eithne Quinn as a new lecturer in American Studies. Eithne will strengthen our research and teaching interests in popular music and African-American culture. Dr George McKay has been promoted to Reader in Contemporary Cultural Studies, and his new collection may be of interest to Americanists working on youth/counterculture: DiY Culture: Party & Protest in Nineties Britain is published by Verso. We are launching what we hope will become an annual one-day colloquium on American Studies, characterised by our particular interests in transatlantic cultural relations, as Dr Alan Rice is organising a conference for late Spring 1999 on the Black AtlanticÑmore in the next Newsletter. (You can contact Alan before then on a.rice@uclan.ac.uk, tel. 01772 893036.) We were pleased to welcome as a guest lecture in March Professor Wilfred Samuels from University of Utah.

The University has continued its involvement in the Maastricht Center for Transatlantic Studies, which began its teaching programme in the Spring. Based at Teikyo University Holland, the Maastricht Center offers two semester-length study-abroad programmes per year, focusing on a comparative, multidisciplinary approach to transatlantic relationships and developments.

George McKay

Keele University: The David Bruce Centre

The David Bruce Centre welcomes applications from candidates wishing to study for a PhD. Grants-in-aid are available for registered students for travel and subsistence costs in the United States. In 1997/98 eleven students received Bruce Centre awards. The Centre is also able to send one student to the John F Kennedy Institute, Free University, Berlin, for up to three months.
Robert Garson
David Bruce Centre for American Studies
Keele University
Staffs ST5 5BG
T el.: +44 1782 583015 secretary: +44 1782 583010

Robert Garson

University of Leeds: Developments

The literature MA programme at Leeds has been broadened to include modules in film and photography, and has been retitled as an MA in American Literature and Culture. This has enabled it to increase its intake of interdisciplinary American Studies graduates while retaining its traditional intake of students with more purely literary interests. In addition, from 1998 onwards, it is possible to take the MA with a semester of study at one of eight partner institutions on the continental mainland; these are Amsterdam, Basel, Berlin, Copenhagen, Munich, Orleans, Turin, and Venice. Students are awarded an MA in American Literature and Culture (With European Study). This scheme, which is partly funded by the EU Socrates programme, is associated with a curriculum development project, convened by American & Canadian Studies at Nottingham, to produce ‘European Modules’ in various aspects of American Studies.

Despite the fact that Leeds created Britain’s first chair in American Literature – a chair which, unfortunately, lapsed for a while – at the undergraduate level American offerings have never been more than options. It is pleasing to report, therefore, that from 1999 onwards, American Literature will constitute part of the ‘core’ for English degrees. In addition, one of the option modules, Writing America, has been designed, through the inclusion of cultural contextual material, to serve as the first step of a ‘pathway’ in American Literature.

At doctoral research student level, recruitment in American topics has been lively, perhaps mainly due to two factors. The first was the creation of full fees awards equivalent to those offered by the British Academy, with an additional element for travel to the U.S. These Douglas Grant Scholarships were named after the first holder of the American chair at Leeds. For financial reasons, their award is currently in abeyance, but it is to be hoped that they will again be offered for entry in 1999. The second factor is the very lively postgraduate culture in the School of English as a whole. The fact that there are strong cohorts of MA and PhD students in most areas of English studies, including Postcolonial, with a sufficient base for postgraduates to run their own seminar series and a couple of one-day postgraduate per year, in itself acts as a magnet.

Last but definitely not least, as they say, the American literature group has been expanded by the addition of Bridget Bennett, formerly of Warwick. Bridget will teach on the modules mentioned above and on specialist options of her own in turn of the century literature, journalism and women’s writing.

For more information on any aspect of American literature and culture at Leeds, please contact Mick Gidley, School of English, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT; g.m.gidley@leeds.ac.uk

Midlands Branch of the British Association for American Studies (MBAAS) Annual Report 1997-98

The main activity of MBAAS in this session was the organization of regional postgraduate conference for postgraduates on February 7th. The branch has taken note of the proliferation of postgraduate conferences in the last year. Overhere held its postgraduate conference in Plymouth and postgraduates primarily at Birmingham also organised a themed conference on the 1950s. On reflection, however, the committee agreed that there is still a need for regional conferences, primarily as a means of introducing the relatively small number of research students in American Studies to their peers in a locality. Larger conferences do not seem to be more effective in terms of the number of students attracted and themed conferences are understandably limited in scope. Every year the students who attend the MBAAS conference indicate that they have enjoyed the format of the day and the opportunity to meet other postgrads, to make links between their own work and that of others and to learn via the workshop sessions on publications and job applications about the practicalities of career development. Every year attending postgrads are invited to add their name to a postgrad email list so that I can inform them of matters of interest in the region. In this way, I can publicise guest lectures at Warwick and one-day jazz workshops at Nottingham and thus hopefully sustain the collegiality that maintains BAAS itself.

The MBAAS committee is a relatively small one with currently two officers from Nottingham. We hope to include other regional institutions, although given the difficulties of getting everyone together even once or twice a year, and the travel costs involved, we are wary of adopting a policy of full institutional representation across a region that can go as far North as Alsager and Sheffield, as far South as Northampton, as far West as Wolverhampton and as far east as Hull. However, if anyone wishes to join the committee, we would welcome them.

Branch officers: Peter Ling (chair); Elizabeth Clapp (Treasurer); Mark Jancovich (Secretary). Co-opted: Tim Lustig

University of Wales Swansea: American Studies

The Department of American Studies at the University of Wales Swansea is pleased to announce the formation of a new research group – focused upon Border Areas and in particular the US-Mexican border – funded by a generous grant from Alcoa and additional funding from the US Embassy in Britain and directed by Dr. Phil Melling. The funding has enabled the department to make two full-time appointments in the field, Dr. Candida Hepworth and Dr. David R.Bewley-Taylor, and provide support for a number of research trips which will lead to future colloquia and conferences. The Department is also pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. Duncan Campbell, who recently completed his Ph.D. at Cambridge on Britain and the American Civil War, and who will bring added strength to the Department’s history provision and will teach a module on The Civil War in American Culture. In addition, the department appointed to a permanent position Dr. Craig Phelan, who is currently finishing his third book on labour organisations and leadership in the US, the most recent on Terence Powderly and the Knights of Labor. Finally, Borderlines: Studies in American Culture, a quarterly journal edited by Dr. Jon Roper and Dr. Phil Melling at the Department, is entering its fifth year of publication. Now published by the University of Wales Press, the journal has added a book review and review essay section and continues to thrive under the steady hand of Managing Editor Candida Hepworth, who has also guest edited a special issue on Chicana/Chicano Studies, due out after Christmas. Contributions and queries about submissions should be directed to
Dr. Hepworth
Department of American Studies
University of Wales
Swansea
SA2 8PP
UK
c.n.hepworth@swan.ac.uk

Book Review queries to Dr. Michael McDonnell at m.mcdonnell@swan.ac.uk.

Subscription information, queries and samples to the University of Wales Press
6 Gwennyth Street
Cathays, Cardiff
CF2 4YD, UK

orpress@press.wales.ac.uk.

Michael McDonnell

Three Cities Project Update

The following is an update on the work of the HRB funded Three American Cities: New York, Chicago and Los Angeles Project. As some will know the project is based at the Universities of Nottingham and Birmingham, directed by Professor Douglas Tallack with Dr Liam Kennedy as co-director and Drs Anna Notaro and Maria Balshaw as project Research Fellows. The group has been working together for just over a year now and there are a number of developments in the project work that may be of interest to BAAS members. This year has seen the development of a project web site. The site is located at http://www.nottingham.ac.uk/3cities/ The web site has been a great success, being showcased as part of the American Studies Crossroads Electronic Expo, and playing a significant role in the dissemination of project information. The web site also contains further details about the project members, their research in progress and their recent publications in the field of American urbanism.

The first project conference, entitled Urban Space and Representation, was held in Nottingham in May this year. For those who weren’t able to get to the conference, there are transcripts of the conference papers and discussion on the Conference page of the project web site.

The group would like to invite BAAS members to visit the Conference page and provide feedback to the papers and discussion. A form for this purpose is available online. This feedback will be published on the web site and discussion will be opened up so that authors may respond to comments. The group envisages a geographically extended version of a conference Q & A. This will be an exciting opportunity to participate in a virtual continuation of the conference and the group looks forward to seeing responses from BAAS members. Anna Notaro, conference organiser, will be editing a volume that will include the papers and (with the permission of participants) the virtual debates they engender. This will be a unique experiment in real and virtual collaboration and is a good example of the kind of work the Three Cities Project seeks to foster. The next big event for the group will be a Three Cities conference in Birmingham in September 1999 (date to be confirmed). This will focus on all three cities and will take papers from any historical period and any discipline. A formal call for papers will be sent out at the end of September.

Other project events include regular Urban Cultures seminars held at Birmingham (monthly on a Saturday) and Nottingham (during termtime in the evening). Please contact Maria Balshaw at M.J.Balshaw@bham.ac.ukfor further details on any of the above, or see the project web site.

Maria Balshaw on behalf of the Three Cities Project Team

Maria Balshaw, Research Fellow in American Literature/ 3 Cities Project, Dept. of American and Canadian Studies, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham, UK; Tel: ‘+44 121 4143274; Fax ‘+44 121 4146866

Obituary- Herbert Nicholas, 1911-1998

Herbert Nicholas was a founding member of the BAAS and its second Chairman. He took pride in the fact that under his chairmanship between 1959 and 1962 BAAS membership swelled from 212 to nearly 400. At that time he was primarily seen as a political scientist, being Nuffield Reader in the Comparative Study of Institutions at Oxford, though his contributions to historical scholarship were more fully recognized in 1969 when he was elected the first Rhodes Professor of American History and Institutions. Today many practitioners of American Studies see themselves as advancing an integrated, interdisciplinary field of study. The early pioneers of the subject, such scholars as Denis Brogan, Marcus Cunliffe and Herbert Nicholas, moved easily between the traditional disciplines and did not draw sharp boundaries between them.

In some ways, perhaps, Herbert Nicholas was an unlikely Americanist. The son of a Welsh Baptist minister, academic talent had won him a place at Oxford, where he had read Classics, securing an unlikely Third in the first part of his degree but vindicating himself in 1934 with a First in Greats. He thereafter lived in Oxford for virtually his whole life, much of it in his beloved New College, and, with his precise language, sharp wit, and somewhat austere bachelor manner, it would be tempting to characterize him as a ‘typical Oxford don,’ if such a creature existed. Such a background might have made him part of that snobbish Oxford coterie which doubted whether there was much to be learned from the United States.

But the scholarly classicist became a committed Americanist. Part of the explanation may lie in his Welsh roots, for he inherited not only his father’s piety but also his identification with the Liberal party and a belief that the lot of humankind can be improved. Another part was his experience of New Deal America as a Commonwealth Scholar between 1935 and 1937, when he came greatly to admire the presidency of Franklin Roosevelt, with its demonstration that political institutions can offer hopeful solutions to the most serious problems. An intellectual stimulus, encountered while in the United States, was Denis Brogan’s American Political System, which showed him that American political culture was at least as vibrant and challenging as the older cultures of Europe. And another vital stage in his transformation was the critical international situation of his young manhood. He recognized early that the role of the United States in the coming war would be decisive to its outcome, and his appreciation of the American dimension was deepened during the war when he served in the Ministry of Information’s American Division. In the post-war order, he had come to believe, world peace would depend on the behaviour of the United States. ‘As far as the Free World was concerned,’ he wrote of that country in the immediate post-war period, ‘her shoulders held the sky suspended.’ His first book, the final draft of which was completed in 1946 before the new American role in the world was resolved, abandons its scholarly detachment in its conclusion with a plea to the United States not to revert to isolationism now that ‘it was world civilization which was at stake.’ Herbert Nicholas was part of that generation of academic Americanists, many of whom had served in Whitehall or in the armed services during the Second World War, who believed that the United States could be a benign influence in the world and who cherished strong Atlantic ties. At the time of Suez the Liberal Herbert Nicholas and his Conservative contemporary Harry Allen were both moved to protest against that ‘lunatic folly,’ though neither habitually engaged in public demonstrations.

Thus Herbert Nicholas abandoned classical and 17th-century studies for the study of political institutions and the United States, taking his part in combating the anti-American prejudice he found among some of his fellow dons. (‘A professorship?’, one college head had sniffed when the Harmsworth Chair was established. ‘I hardly think the subject warrants that. A lectureship perhaps.’) At Oxford he laboured at the uphill task of extending the teaching of American history and politics, participating in the teaching of the celebrated special subject Slavery and Secession and eventually founding a new one on the New Deal. Perhaps his own Oxford persona helped him to advance the cause more successfully than a more recalcitrant figure might have done. In his many years at Oxford too he trained generations of graduate students.

To the wider academic world Herbert Nicholas became known largely through his publications. The American Union (1948) was designed to meet the stirring interest of British students in things American. But his own interests were not confined to the United States, as when he produced the Nuffield study of The British General Election of 1950 (1951) in the series later identified with David Butler. His interest in electoral politics never diminished, and for several years he covered American presidential elections for the Journal of American Studies. (Indeed, while not all were reported in the Journal, he visited the United States for every presidential election between 1948 and 1988). But he made his greatest scholarly mark in the field of international and especially Anglo-American relations. To judge from the battered copies in university libraries, such publications as Britain and the United States (1963) and The United States and Britain (1975), continue to be widely used. A major pioneer work which saw several editions was The United Nations as a Political Institution (1959), written in part out of his anger over Suez and the revelation of the widespread ignorance among both the British public and even political elites about the UN, though it was to sell more copies in the United States. One suspects that the book he most enjoyed producing was Washington Despatches, 1941-1945 (1981), an edited collection of the vivid weekly political reports sent by the British Ambassador in Washington to the Foreign Office in London during the war, most of which had been drafted by his friend and sometime philosophy tutor Isaiah Berlin. Herbert Nicholas’s scholarship was to earn him not only the Rhodes Chair but also election as a Fellow of the British Academy in the same year, 1969.

In his heyday Herbert Nicholas was a familiar and convivial figure at American Studies conferences, and a tireless visitor to the United States. His graduate students sometimes saw less of him than they wished, for it could seem that either he or they were on an American trip at any given time. In retirement he disappeared from conferences for a while as he cared for his ailing elder sisters, returning the loving attention they had given him in his early sickly childhood when they had taught him at home. When they died he enjoyed a brief Indian Summer in the Americanist community he had helped to create, returning to BAAS Conferences as he approached 80, perhaps his last being at Aberystwyth in 1989, where he zestfully played the role of Grand Old Welshman. From 1991 a stroke precluded further such activity, and he thereafter lived quietly in Oxford.

Herbert Nicholas’s natural diffidence did not make him the most immediately approachable figure for students and younger colleagues, but once the ice had broken his good humour, kindliness and zest for life bubbled through. He helped to establish American Studies in this country at a time when it needed his gravitas, his access to high governmental and academic places in both Britain and the United States, and his shrewd judgment and scholarly charm. His role won him many warm friendships on both sides of the Atlantic, and those friendships in turn helped to enrich the single world of Americanist scholarship that he saw as transcending national boundaries.

Michael Heale

The Conference Scene: Conferences/Calls for Papers/Seminars

Oxford American Studies Works in Progress Seminar Series Oct-Nov 1998

In anticipation of the Oxford American Institute, the following seminar series is announced.

Mondays of even weeks, Van Heyningen Room, St Cross College, 3.15 – 4.30pm

19 October (2nd week) ‘Property, Shmoperty: Philip Roth and the Contradictions of Cultural Property’ Prof. Ron Bush (St John’s College)

2 November (4th week) ‘British Identity Politics in the American Revolution’ Dr. Dror Wahrman (University of Warwick)

16 November (6th week) ‘Letter-Writing and Representations of Selfhood in America, 1750-1800’ Konstantin Dierks (Brown University and the McNeil Center for Early American Studies)

30 November (8th week) ‘Towards Recovering Ideas of Transatlantic Cultural Community in 18th-century British North America’ Dr. James Raven (Mansfield College)

This seminar series is deliberately informal. Speakers talk about their current work for about twenty to thirty minutes, followed by forty minutes of questions, feedback, and discussion.

All welcome. Dr Peter Thompson (St. Cross), Sarah Knott (St. Hugh’s and Royal Holloway) and Josh Civin (Merton)

For further information please contact Josh Civin at:joshua.civin@merton.ox.ac.uk

The American Politics Group – 25th Annual Conference, 6-8 January 1999

The American Politics Group is very pleased to announce that It will hold its 25th Annual Conference at Selwyn College, University of Cambridge. The conference will take place from Wednesday January 6th to Friday January 8th. The conference is open to all those interested in the politics of the USA. The American Politics Group has been of enormous value to US politics specialists. We hope that you will join us for this celebration of the organisation’s first quarter century. Please refer any questions to the conference convenor: Professor Philip Davies (APG Conference Convenor), American Studies, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, De Montford University, Leicester LE1 9BH, England, UK; Phone/voicemail: ’44 [0] 116 257 7398; Fax: ’44 [0] 116 257 7199; Email: pjd@dmu.ac.uk

Annual Commonwealth Fund Conference in American History, January

January 29-30 1999 ‘Two Souths: Towards an Agenda for Comparative Study of the American South and the Italian Mezzogiorno’, the annual Commonwealth Fund Conference in American History will be held at University College London (UK). The conference builds upon recent writing on the two regions and explores the possibilities of comparison. Professor Peter Kolchin will deliver the keynote address. Panel sessions include: ‘Constructions of the Souths,’ ‘Elites’, ‘Migration,’ ‘Race, Class, and Nation,’ ‘Rural Workers and Agrarian Transformation,’ and ‘Gender.’ For details, including information about accommodation, contact Enrico Dal Lago, Department of History, University College London, Gower Street, London WC1E 6BT, UK email: ucraeda@ucl.ac.uk

Institute of Southern Studies, Black Majority Conference, 12-13

Walter Edgar writes that the Institute for Southern Studies, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC will be hosting a conference on slavery in the colonial South in observance of the 25th anniversary of the publication of Peter Wood’s Black Majority on 12-13 February 1999. Among the participants will be Peter Kolchin, Ted Rosengarten, Ira Berlin, Peter Coclanis, Philip Morgan, Judith Carney, Joyce Chaplin, Charles Joyner, Leland Ferguson, Mary Galvin, Dale Rosengarten, Larry Hudson, Jennifer Morgan, Kathleen Brown, Robert Olwell, Jack Greene, Dan Littlefield, Robert Weir.

Call for Papers: Scholars are invited to submit papers for two sessions: ‘South Carolina and the Slave Trade’ and ‘South Carolina and the Revolution’.

Interested scholars should contact Professor Tom Brown, Assistant Director Southern Studies, USC; Email: BrownTJ@garnet.cla.sc.edu

The Politics of Evangelicalism Seminar, February 28-March 7 1999

The Center for U.S. Studies at Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg (Germany) announces an intensive seminar: ‘The Politics of Evangelicalism: Conservative Christianity and the State in the U.S. Since 1945″ (February 28-March 7, 1999)

This interdisciplinary course will trace the political resurgence of conservative Christianity in the United States, , which has left a distinct mark on modern American culture and society. Although evangelicalism is commonly associated with a right-wing agenda, it is a complex and dynamic movement that ultimately defies clear political categorization. In the course of the semester we will look at evangelical religion in relationship to race and gender issues, the welfare state, liberal culture, and American politics.

The seminar is geared toward students of history, the social sciences, and American studies, and is open to students from all over the world. It is conducted in English and covers the material of an entire semester (15 sessions) within the span of one week. Students are expected to prepare for the seminar in advance and will receive a reading assignment of approximately 500-700 pages one month prior to the seminar. Course participants will receive undergraduate credit from Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg upon successful completion of all course requirements. In order to earn university credit (Schein), participants are required to submit a research paper no later than six months after the end of the seminar.

Seminar participants will be selected on a competitive basis. During the seminar, course participants are housed at the Leucorea Foundation. The seminar fee for admitted students is DM 150.- and includes instruction, accommodations, and meals. Costs for travel to and from Wittenberg are the student’s responsibility. A limited number of stipends to defray seminar fees may be available.

The Center for U.S. Studies operates under the auspices of the Leucorea Foundation, a non-profit organization affiliated with the University of Halle-Wittenberg. The Leucorea administers the holdings of the former University of Wittenberg and promotes educational, cultural, and research activities in its historic buildings. The Center fosters a better understanding of American history, politics, culture, and literature through a variety of programs. The Internet-linked computer labs and the Center’s library provide access to resources in a wide range of subject areas. The academic seminars are made possible through the generous support of a number of sponsors including the Leucorea Foundation, the United States Information Service, the Kšrber-Stiftung, the German Academic Exchange Service, the German Fulbright Commission, and the State of Sachsen-Anhalt.

Application Procedures: The application deadline for the course ‘The Politics of Evangelicalism: Conservative Christianity and the State in the U.S. Since 1945″ (February 28-March 7, 1999) is December 1.

If you are interested in participating in the seminar, please send a cover letter, a curriculum vitae, and a letter of recommendation to:

Dr. Axel R. Schaefer The Center for U.S. Studies Stiftung LEUCOREA / Martin-Luther-UniversitŠt Halle-Wittenberg Collegienstra§e 62, D-06886 Lutherstadt Wittenberg, Germany Tel.: (0049) 3491-466137 Fax (0049) 3491-466223 E-mail: schaefer@zusas.uni-halle.de

The cover letter should include the following: Seminar title, dates, and instructor’s name; Your name, address, year of study, and university affiliation; Your interest in and commitment to the seminar and the topic; Your fields of study, academic advisor, related university-level courses you have taken, and other relevant experience and competencies; Your proficiency in English; Your visa requirements (if any) in order to come to Germany. Any additional information about yourself that you think would have an impact on your participation in the course.

For further questions and registration information, please contact us by e-mail at schaefer@zusas.uni-halle.de, by phone (03491-466137), or by fax (03491-466223), or visit our homepage at http://www.zusas.uni-halle.de

Post-War American Poetry Conference 3-4 March 1999

A two-day conference on Post-War American Poetry will be held at the University of Liege, Belgium, on March 3-4, 1999. Participants include Maxine Chernoff and Paul Hoover. Abstracts / one-page proposals for papers on any aspect of post-war American poetry are invited. Possible topics might include, but are not limited to:

– anthologies; canon formation – American poetry in an international context – American poetry and multiculturalism/multilingualism – the use, or nonuse, of traditional modes, genres, and subgenres – the politics of poetic form – poetry and the performing arts – American poetry and postmodernism – Language writing – American poetry and the mass media

Publication of the proceedings is planned.

Call for Papers: Please send abstracts and proposals, by January 15, 1999, to:

Michel Delville & Christine Pagnoulle Universite de Liege Departement d’anglais 3, Place Cockerill 4000 Liege (Belgium) Fax: ’32 4 366 57 21 e-mail: mdelville@ulg.ac.be or cpagnoulle@ulg.ac.be

Liverpool Hope University College

Call for Papers, A Reminder: Collegium for African American Research. Proposals for papers for the 3rd International Conference ‘Black Liberation in the Americas’ at the University of Munster, Germany, 18-21 March 1999 should reach Carl Pedersen, Center for American Studies, Odense University, Campusvej 55, DK 5230 Odense, Denmark, Fax: 54 65 93 04 90, email:c.pedersen@hist.ou.dk also by 15 September 1998.

Black American Liberation in the Americas Conference, 18-21 March 1999

The next workshop will be held in Vienna from April 8th through April 11 organized by Waldemar Zacharasiewicz. The theme for the conference will be ‘The Many Souths: Class in Southern Culture’. The participants in the conference will largely be accommodated in a conference hotel on the outskirts of Vienna (which was used for the Faulkner Conference in 1991). Attempts are going made to find sponsors for the event, but no details can yet be given concerning registration fee and accommodation costs. The regular price for a hotel room would be approximately $70.00 per night. Call for Papers: Proposals for papers (of about 25 Minutes) containing a short abstract not exceeding one page should be sent by 15 September 1998 to: Waldemar Zacharasiewicz, Institut fur Anglistik und Americanistik, Universitat Wien, Universitatscampus AAKH – Hof 8, Spitalgasse 2-4, 1-1090 Wien, Austria; Fax: 43 (1) 4277 42497; Tel: 43 (1) 4277 42410

On to Vienna, SSF Workshop April 8-11 1999

Symbiosis addresses the artificial divide between literatures in English on either side of the Atlantic, a divide recognised by few creative writers but institutionalised in the modern academic community. It is the only Journal uniquely concerned with studies of literary relations between the British Isles and the Americas and is interested in all genres, all theoretical approaches and all periods from the beginnings of Anglophone America to the present.

Call for Papers: Proposals requested by 1 March 1999. Organised by the University of the West of England, Bristol.

Academic contact:
Professor Kate Fullbrook, tel. 0117 965 5384, ext. 4339
E-mail kate.fullbrook@uwe.ac.uk

Administrative contact:
Mrs. J. Garland, tel 0117 965 5384, ext. 4529, e-mail janet.garland@uwe.ac.uk. Faculty of Humanities, University of the West of England, St. Matthias Campus, Oldbury Court Road, Fishponds, Bristol BS16 2JP

The Second Symbiosis Conference: Textual Relations Between Britain and America, 5-7 July 1999

As part of the HRB funded Three Cities: New York, Chicago and Los Angeles project we are pleased to announce a call for papers for our second international conference, Cultures and Representations, to be held September 3-4, 1999 at the University of Birmingham. The project, a collaborative venture based at the Universities of Birmingham and Nottingham is pioneering interdisciplinary work on the study of urban formations and representations, focused on New York, Chicago and Los Angeles in the modern period. A primary aim of the project is to foster national and international collaborative links between researchers working on these cities from the broadest range of disciplinary approaches. As part of this initiative we invite papers from scholars working on our focus cities in any period and from any disciplinary orientation.

The project is developing the use of multimedia in the study of urban formations, visual, literary and cultural representations of urban space and urban theory and we would particularly welcome papers that seek to utilise or address the use of new technologies for the study of city spaces. The project members and many of our associates work on representations of urban space in literature, photography, fine art, maps, architecture, popular art, advertising, television and film and many draw on contemporary work in urban and visual theory, cultural studies and cultural geography. We would be pleased to see papers reflecting these emphases. However, the project also has an historical and material aspect to it and we would particularly encourage scholars from disciplines such as history, social science, urban planning and architecture to submit papers in order that different standpoints and approaches may be brought into productive dialogue with one another. Likewise, though the primary foci of the conference will be the cities of New York, Chicago and Los Angeles we welcome comparative papers that set these cities in a wider national or international context.

Call for Papers: Papers should generally be 25-30 minutes in length. We are open to papers that think creatively about the paper presentation – whether this is through the use of video, computer or visual presentation. We also welcome proposals for whole panels, short roundtable discussion panels, or presentation and response sessions.

Plenary speakers for the conference (one to be focused on each city) will be announced mid-December.

The deadline for proposals is March 1st, and proposers will be informed of their acceptance by April 1st. Proposals should be submitted on paper and disc and should be no more than 300 words in length. The proposal should be accompanied by a covering letter detailing institutional affiliation (where appropriate), contact address and where possible email address. Proposals can also be submitted electronically to Dr Maria Balshaw at M.J.Balshaw@bham.ac.uk

Details on conference cost, registration and accommodation will be announced mid-December.

For further details and enquiries please contact Dr Maria Balshaw at The Department of American and Canadian Studies, University of Birmingham Edgbaston Birmingham UK Tel: 0121 414 3274 Fax: 0121 4146866; Email: M.J.Balshaw@bham.ac.uk

Information on the conference and further details on the Three Cities project can be found on our project web site at: http://www.nottingham.ac.uk/3cities/
Please check this site regularly for updates on conference speakers and plenaries.

Three Cities Cultures and Representations, Conference September 3-4 1999

Sharon Monteith (University of Hertfordshire) and Suzanne Jones (University of Richmond) are co-editing an issue of Critical Survey on the American South called ‘South to a New Place’. Critical Survey is a journal of literary studies that addresses central issues of critical practice and literary theory. The project should result in a collection of essays to be published in the US as well. Interested contributors are invited to interpret the topic as broadly as they wish but the editors are interested in such topics as the South’s place in European Studies or in the American consciousness: new theories of Southern regionalism or literature; new perspectives on place in Southern literature. Anyone interested in contributing a paper should send a short abstract outlining their ideas in no more than 500 words.

Call for Contributors: The deadline for submission of completed papers (5,000-6,000 words) will be 1 February 1999. Enquiries may be addressed to Sharon Monteith mail: S.Monteith@herts.ac.uk

Call for Contributors – Critical Survey, ‘South to a New Place’

Their Eyes Were Watching God in the Anglo-American Academy: Critical Reception and New Reading Paradigms, Gloria L Cronin, Ed.

The Editor is seeking contributors of scholarly articles for a proposed volume on Their Eyes Were Watching God which deals with one or any contribution of the following topics:

Reception history; Popularity in the 1980s and 90s academy; The Afrocentric critical response; The Eurocentric critical response; The politics of multi-culturalism; The politics of canon reformation in the 1980s and 90s; Pedagogical strategies and politics; Feminist re-evaluations; New interpretative paradigms; Postcolonial perspectives.

Please indicate your interest in submitting an essay for this volume by sending a proposed title and abstract for your article to the Editor:
Dr. Gloria L. Cronin
3134 JKHB
English Department
Brigham Young University
Provo, Utah 84602
E-mail: croning@juno.com

Early Americanist Group Established in the UK and Ireland

Following upon a very successful two-day colloquium on Early America at Cambridge this past spring organised by Betty Wood, Mary Geiter, Bill Speck and Tony Badger and funded by Tony Badger and the Mellon Fund, a large and growing group of cross-national scholars working in the field of early America broadly defined have established an e-mail discussion and communication list as the first step in organising a more formal society or group. Plans are also being made to hold an annual colloquium, and a more formal biennial conference sponsored jointly by Cambridge and the Omohundro Institute of Early American History and Culture in Williamsburg, Virginia. The group also hopes to capitalise upon and provide a warm welcome for the OIEAHC when it holds its Seventh Annual Conference in Glasgow in the year 2001. For more information or if you would like to be added to our e-mail list, please contact Michael McDonnell, Department of American Studies, University of Wales Swansea, SA2 8PP, or m.mcdonnell@swansea.ac.uk

Colloquium: Jazz Contexts

If jazz is of central importance to American culture, not only as a part of African American expression but also as an indigenous, national artform – why does it so rarely get a mention on American Studies programs? Is it because teaching music requires a technical expertise seldom found in departments, or is there a particular resistance to jazz which is not the case with more commonly studied music like rock or hiphop? Such a neglect, and the means of addressing it in teaching and research, was the focus of the colloquium Jazz Contexts: the Music and its Role in American Culture, hosted jointly between American & Canadian Studies and Music departments at the University of Nottingham on 6 June 1998. In addition to pedagogical issues, the day’s discussion involved a number of specific topics and figures: from Art Tatum to Charles Mingus, from jazz’s origins in Chicago and New Orleans to Sun Ra’s origins in outer space.

First, Donald Clarke (editor of The Penguin Encyclopedia of Popular Music) raised issues relating to the writing of jazz history: highlighting work still to be done in reconstructing the 19th century’s musical environment, and the need to place jazz in a socio-economic context. Graham Taylor then spoke about Sun Ra, arguing that his claims to come from Saturn are less a matter of eccentricity than a mode of signifying on Afro-Baptist traditions and a reworking of Black narratives of deliverance. (Taylor, aka. Graham Lock, is author of Blutopia, a study of Ellington, Ra and Braxton to be published next year.)

Peter Townsend of the University of Huddersfield asked: how do we interpret the emergence of free jazz in the 1960s? How much is it an evolution away from greater harmonic complexity, and how much is it a response to social conditions? Comparing Ornette Coleman’s polyphonic style in Free Jazz (1960) to John Coltrane’s denser, unindividuated textures in Ascension (1965), Townsend indicated the shortcomings of both approaches before combining them in an emphasis on the music’s return, for both political and aesthetic reasons, to African American folk forms.

One of the crucial matters, then, was how to relate formal and cultural analyses. David Horn (director of Liverpool University’s Institute of Popular Music) cautioned against a kind of critical deafness which neglects the technically virtuoso work of a figure like Art Tatum for more ‘readable’ formal innovations; and the issue was treated in depth in the day’s main event, an open session on the teaching of jazz. With George McKay’s course at the University of Central Lancashire as a model – one of the few to present American popular music as a subject in its own right – people discussed the need to develop a musical vocabulary, the exchange of analytical skills and cultural competencies, and the problems of teaching something which is never far from questions of taste. Much of the debate centred on value, both artistic and educational – and here the question seemed to be: is there something in jazz which gives it a significance above other musical forms, or a cultural significance beyond its role in African American history?

Overall, what emerged from the discussion and the day as a whole was a much wider debate, not only about the kind of cultural picture American Studies should offer, but also about changing relations between staff, students and knowledge.

Colin Harrison, Liverpool John Moores University

Conference Report: Identifying America/American

The School of English and American Studies at the University of Exeter hosted the annual BAAS Interdisciplinary One-Day Postgraduate conference on 6th December 1997, entitled ‘Identifying America / American Identities’. BAAS gratefully provided a grant of £200 to support the conference, as well as helping to publicise the event in the early stages.

The conference was quite modestly attended, perhaps due to the relative geographical remoteness of our University. We also had to overcome several last minute problems of illness and cancellation. Despite all this, the conference was friendly and relaxed, and proved to be a useful and stimulating experience.

The conference was organised around four panels. The morning session was on ‘Nostalgia’. Paul Grainge (University of Nottingham) spoke on ‘Time’s Past in the Present: Nostalgia and the Black and White Image’ followed by Maurice Bottomley (Manchester Metropolitan University) on ‘Back in the Day: Nostalgia and the New Classic Soul’. Despite the differing subject areas, the discussion afterwards raised some interesting points about the American desire for nostalgia.

The session was followed by an announcement from Anna Notaro (University of Nottingham) on the forthcoming HRB funded ‘Three Cities’ project, which is being run jointly by the Universities of Birmingham and Nottingham.

After lunch, the conference split into two concurrent panels. The ‘Ethnicity’ session heard papers by Eric Kaufmann (London School of Economics) on ‘From Anglo-Saxon to Avant-Garde: Modernism and White American Identity Since 1913’, Richard Crownshaw (University of Sussex) on ‘The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum: Jewish-American Identities and the Nationalisation of Holocaust Memory’ and David Kennedy (University of Exeter) on ‘Martin Scorcese – Italian-American?’. The discussion period found useful common ground between the three papers, and was informative in its considerations of what ethnicity might mean in contemporary American society.

Next door, the session was called ‘Looking Outside / Looking Inside’. Saer Mary Ba (University of Exeter) spoke on ‘Religion and Struggle Against Racism: the case of Malcolm X and the Nation of Islam’ and Sue Wragg (University of Nottingham) spoke on ‘A Modernist Identity?: The US and French Modernity’. Thanks are especially due her to Candida Taylor (University of Birmingham), who stepped into the breach caused by one of the last minute cancellations and presented her paper on Zoot suits and 1950’s Chicano fashion and style. The discussion afterwards found shared thematic concepts between the papers while remaining sensitive to the specific differences between them.

Next the delegates were given a tour of the Bill Douglas Centre, the University of Exeter’s new museum and research facility. Collected by the late Scottish filmmaker Bill Douglas and gratefully donated by his friend Peter Jewell, the collection consists of over 15,000 books and over 30,000 artifacts relating to cinema and popular culture.

The final session of the day was on ‘Women Writing’. Ann Hurford (Nottingham Trent University) spoke on ‘Speaking out and Soap Opera: Anne Tyler’s Interrogation of Language in A Slipping-Down Life’ and Hilary Dixon (Independent) on ‘Margaret Fuller: Identity Work’. One of the conference casualties, Sophia Taylor (University of Nottingham), who had injured her back a few days before the event, arranged to have her paper on ‘Ellen Glasgow’s Spiritual Identity: Skeptic or Believer?’ read by her colleague Helen Oakley. Despite the chronological differences between the writers addressed, the discussion session again found useful links between the papers.

The conference as a whole was a good advert both for the quality and diversity of work being done in American Studies at the postgraduate level and all of the papers provoked stimulating and interesting discussions. Paul Giles from the editorial board of OVERhere invited all the contributors to send their papers in to be considered for publication, and it is hoped that a selection of them will appear.

We would like to thank Jo Whitmore, the postgraduate secretary in the School, for her help in all aspects of organising the conference, as well as PhD student Fan Austin for her help on the day. Finally we thank BAAS and OVERhere again for their support.

David Kennedy and Richard Bradbury

EAAS and BAAS

EAAS Spring 1998 Conference Report

In the spring of 1998 the European Association for American Studies (EAAS) ran an extremely stimulating and successful conference in Lisbon. There were three plenary lectures (including a spell-binding reading-cum-lecture by novelist Robert Coover), several parallel or ‘stream’ lectures by a range of scholars from all over Europe and the U.S., and thirty workshops – in my view the heart of the conference – most of which met for two 2-hour sessions, enabling over 200 scholars to give presentations. In April of 2000 EAAS is mounting a conference in Graz which should prove equally large and exciting (please see the call for papers printed elsewhere in this issue of the Newsletter). Such biennial conferences are the most visible EAAS activity. Other activities include: support for new institutional American studies work in Europe, especially in eastern Europe; publication of American Studies in Europe, the Association’s newsletter, which is edited by former BAAS Chair Bob Burchell; occasional book-length publications (including support for the series titled European Contributions to American Studies put out by VU University Press in Amsterdam); an EAAS www site; and co-operative ventures with the U.S. American Studies Association and with a variety of European and American governmental organisations.

Over the years I have enjoyed taking an active role in EAAS conferences – for example, I co-convened workshops at the meetings in Budapest and Warsaw – so I was very pleased to be elected to succeed David Adams as the UK representative to the EAAS Board. I was elected (for a 5-year term) at the Birmingham BAAS conference in 1997 and attended my first Board meeting at the Lisbon conference earlier this year. I would like to pass on my two clearest impressions. The first is that EAAS is definitely an important organisation which is in touch with current concerns. (In the past, the rather hierarchical nature of the composition of the Board, with some members serving for extraordinarily long periods, meant that this was not always the case, and it was understandable that some of us in BAAS could entertain doubts about EAAS’s effectiveness). The most pressing issues are consequences of the larger political evolution of Europe. Associations from the new post-Cold War eastern European states are clamouring to join, but are they each ready to do so? Do they have democratic constitutions? If they each join, the Board could grow to a membership of over 25; would it, therefore, be sensible to create a two-tier Board? Could equality between member national associations be maintained in such circumstances? Should it be? The current President, Heinz Ickstadt of Berlin, is very sensitive to these matters, and whoever succeeds him in 2000 will have to be equally attuned to both political and intercultural nuances. EAAS, especially its Board, is like a microcosmic mirror of Europe as a whole, and it is exciting to be part of this dynamic process.

This leads me to my second observation: we in the UK, in BAAS, are not playing as significant a part in EAAS as we should be. Next to the German association, our membership vies with that of the French association as the second highest in Europe, yet when I looked through the list of conference-goers in Lisbon we were nowhere near second in numbers. There were not only more French participants and more participants from such neighbouring countries as Spain, but more Scandinavians, possibly more Dutch. Some of this may be the result of our traditionally poor funding for conference attendance, exacerbated when the British Academy eliminated overseas conference grants, but I think larger and more nebulous cultural forces are also at work. Judie Newman, the most recent former Chair of BAAS, was fond of using the expression ‘to punch our weight’. Thanks to recent Chairs and Committee members, we are now punching our weight in domestic issues – witness Phil Davies’ successful representations re the RAE or over ‘benchmarking’ within the external examining system – but we are not yet doing so in Europe and EAAS. I hope we can speedily put this to rights.

The most telling thing we can do is to participate more fully in EAAS conferences. I hope that, in comparison with the past, many more of you will put yourselves forward for Graz as potential parallel or ‘stream’ speakers and workshop organizers; equally important, when the workshop topics are announced in the EAAS newsletter in the spring/summer of 1999, I hope many others will submit proposals to offer workshop presentations. (And if Graz in 2000 is not possible for you, 2002 holds the prospect of somewhere else equally wonderful.) There is a special excitement in consideration of American culture in an international and multi-cultural context. In my own case, it has definitely made me conscious of just how European I am. This consciousness will surely not be a matter of choice for the British American studies academics who will succeed us. I believe they will need to put it to work, both at the research level and in institutional life. We should be preparing the way. Actually, we should be there already.

If you would like to contact me about EAAS, please do so: fax: 0113-233-4774; e-mail: g.m.gidley@leeds.ac.uk.

Full addresses of the Board members, the officers of all constituent associations, and the EAAS www page may be found in the EAAS newsletter, American Studies in Europe, which is distributed to all full members of BAAS.

EAAS-L distribution list moderated by Jaap Verheul jaap.verheul@let.uu.nl.

Contribute to the list by sending your posting to: eaas-l@let.uu.nl

The address of the EAAS homepage has been changed to: http://www.let.uu.nl/eaas

Mick Gidley

EAAS Conference, Graz, Austria, April 14-17 2000

Call for Stream Lectures and Workshop Organizers ‘Nature’s Nation’ Reconsidered: American Concepts of Nature from Wonder to Ecological Crisis.

Today’s advanced understanding of nature calls for a drastic re-conceptualisation of traditional ideas about our relation to the natural environment. At the beginning of a new millennium an adequate understanding of ‘nature’ will be of utmost importance, and an investigation into the dominant ideas and attitudes of a nation and culture powerful enough to change that environment on a global scale would seem highly appropriate. A host of historical, socio-political and economic as well as cultural, literary, and psychological approaches can be applied to the theme in an attempt to understand the place and function of nature in American history (and the history of American self-definition) as well as the current manifestations of a new interest in nature in various areas of American culture and society. Lectures and workshops could thus inquire into the powerful impact the idea of nature had on American society and culture in the past, but also into the creative (‘utopian’) potential it still has in contemporary conceptualisations of alternative or different lives (and life styles). They could explore the multitude of myths and concepts relating to ‘nature’ and ‘America’ (European and American projections, Jeffersonian ideals and agrarian myths from the early republic to the New Deal, from pastoral self-confinement to the dynamics of westward expansion), conservation movements (the establishment of national parks and natural museums), nature writing, the representation of nature in literature, the arts, photography and film. They could also deal with Native American natural religion and its echoes in contemporary mainstream and (ethnic) counter-culture(s), with ecological movements in politics and the arts, with eco-feminism; or with the various manifestations of ‘artificial’ nature in plastic or in cyberspace.

You are invited to propose lecture topics or workshop topics for this conference. In the case of workshops, you may wish to propose a co-organizer; if so, this person must be from another country.

Please send proposals for parallel lectures (an abstract of 1 page maximum) to Mick Gidley, with a copy to Professor Heinz Ickstadt, President EAAS, J.F. Kennedy Institute, Freie Universitat Berlin, Lansstrasse 5-9, D-14195 Berlin, Germany

Please send proposals for workshop topics (an outline of potential coverage of 1 page maximum) to Mick Gidley, with a copy to Professor Walter Hoelbling, Secretary EAAS, Karl-Franzens-Universitat, Graz Institut fur Amerikanistik, Attemsgasse 25, A-8010 Graz, Austria

Mick Gidley’s address is:

Professor Mick Gidley
BAAS Delegate to EAAS
School of English
University of Leeds
Leeds LS2 9JT

SASHA

At the BAAS conference in Norwich, a small group of people met to discuss future prospects for the study of America in Scotland, and the possibility of establishing a new association. It was envisaged that this association would have a strong link, of a nature to be determined, with the BAAS. Representing Americanists throughout Scotland, this organization would have among its functions the lobbying of the forthcoming Scottish parliament, a legislature that will have responsibility for Scotland’s already distinctive educational system. The small group established a steering committee consisting of Dr Colin Nicolson (Stirling), secretary, and Dr Simon Newman (Glasgow) and Professor Rhodri Jeffreys-Jones (Edinburgh), joint chairs. Professor C. Duncan Rice, Principal of Aberdeen University, was elected honorary president. Among the topics discussed was that of composition and nomenclature. The provisional acronym SASHA stands for the Scottish Association for the Study of the History of America. With Glasgow’s Susan Castillo taking the lead, support is now being canvassed amongst literature specialists, so the acronym may become SASHLA, or SASA. Views will also be sought from colleagues engaged in the study of American politics. In the meantime, the fledgling association is giving enthusiastic backing to the Glasgow BAAS conference, where it hopes to meet again, and solidify its plans for the future.

Opinions and suggestions are welcome, and may be sent to any of the following Email addresses:
colin.nicolson@stir.ac.uk
S.Newman@modhist.arts.gla.ac.uk
Jeffreys-Jones.Rhodri@ed.ac.uk
S.Castillo@englit.arts.gla.ac.uk

Announcements

The Library Company of Philadelphia

The Library Company of Philadelphia is an independent research library with collections documenting every aspect of the history and background of American culture from the colonial period to the end of the nineteenth century. A collection of national importance, its holdings number approximately a half-million printed volumes in a wide variety of formats: 75,000 graphics; 160,000 manuscripts; and a small, distinguished collection of early American art and artifacts. The collection is especially strong in Afro-Americana; American science, technology, banking and business, architecture, agriculture, natural history, education, philanthropy, and medicine; German-Americana; pamphlets of the American Revolution, Federal and Jacksonian Periods, and the Civil War; American Judaica; Philadelphia area history; the history of printing, book collecting, and reading; the history of women, domestic economy, and family life; and printmaking, mapmaking, and photography in Philadelphia. In addition, the library has extensive holdings of American novels, plays, poems, essays and orations up to 1860 and complementary collections of British and Continental eighteenth and nineteenth century literature, popular non-fiction, and periodicals.

Photographic Exhibition: Native Nations

Native Nations: Journeys in American Photography examines the photographic representation of and by Native North American people from 1850s to the present day. The first ever exhibition of its kind, it features over 500 fantastic photographic images which introduce visitors to Native history and culture, exploring and challenging the romantic stereotype of the ‘red indian’ or a ‘vanishing’ race prevalent to this day. For any of you interested in the changes in North America over this time period, this is a fantastic opportunity, not to be missed, offering a fresh insight into Native North American culture. 10 September-10 January (closed 24 December-1 January).

KUDOS

Frank Cogliano, University of Edinburgh, was awarded a research fellowship by the David Library of the American Revolution in Washington Crossing, Pennsylvania, in order to complete research for a work on the experiences of American prisoners during the American Revolution.

Professor Stanley Engerman (University of Rochester) the distinguished southern economic historian will be the Pitt Professor of American History and Institutions at Cambridge University for the academic year, 1998-1999.

Professor John David Smith (North Carolina State University), one of the leading authorities on nineteenth century race relations and southern historiography is to be the Fulbright Professor of American Studies at the Ludwig-Maximilians Universitat, Munich for 1998-99. He can be reached at smith_jd@unity.ncsu.edu or c/o Amerika-Institut, Universitat Munchen, Schellingstr.3, 80799, Munich Germany; Tel: 49 89 2180 2137.

Mike Woolf has joined Syracuse University as Director of the University’s London Centre. His role includes development of the University’s relations in Asia. New phone number is 0171 229 0005; E-mail: mike-woolf@lineone.net.

On the Air

S. Jay Kleinberg (Brunel) appeared on Woman’s Hour on 10 July to speak about the 150th anniversary of the Seneca Falls Declaration.

In Print: Members’ Publications

Rhodri Jeffreys-Jones (University of Edinburgh), The CIA and American Democracy (Yale University Press, 1998, paperback $18, ISBN 0-300-07737-8), second edition. This edition has a new section covering the period since the end of the Cold War.

Clive Webb (Reading) has published ‘Big Struggle in a Small Town: Charles Mantinband of Hattiesburg, Mississippi’ in Mark K. Bauman and Berkley Kalin, eds., The Quiet Voices: Southern Rabbis and Black Civil Rights, 1880s to 1990s (Tuscaloosa and London: University of Alabama Press, 1997).

Karen L. Kilcup, Associate Professor of American Literature at The University of North Carolina at Greensboro, was keynote speaker at the ’19th-Century American Women Writers: Issues and Perspectives for the 21st Century’ international conference at Johann Wolfgang Goethe-Universitat in Frankfurt, Germany, this past July. In addition to suggesting issues for future scholarship, she discussed her work published in the past year, including: two journal special issues, Questioning Jewett: Centennial Essays (Colby Quarterly), Nineteenth-Century American Culture (Overhere: A European Journal of American Culture); three books, Nineteenth-Century American Women Writers: An Anthology (Blackwell. Oxford, 1997. ISBN: 0-631-19986-1), Nineteenth-Century American Women Writers: A Critical Reader (Blackwell. Oxford, 1998. ISBN: 0-631-20054-1) , and Robert Frost and Feminine Literary Tradition (Michigan. Ann Arbor, 1998. ISBN: 0-472-10967-7 ); and four articles on related subjects.

At the Department of American Studies, University of Wales Swansea, Jon Roper has published an article entitled ‘Richard Nixon’s Political Hinterland: The Shadows of JFK and Charles de Gaulle,’ in Presidential Studies Quarterly 28 no. 2 (Spring 1998), Nick Selby has recently published The Icon Critical Guide to Moby Dick (Cambridge: Icon, 1998), and David R. Bewley-Taylor’s article, entitled ‘Certification Meets NAFTA: More Schizophrenia in the Misguided War,’ will be in the International Journal of Drug Policy this fall whilst Michael McDonnell’s ‘Popular Mobilization and Political Culture in Revolutionary Virginia: The Failure of the Minutemen and the Revolution from Below,’ will be published in the Journal of American History in December 1998.

Exchange Programmes: The Debate Continues

Exchange Programmes: Views Sought

Thanks are expressed to everyone who sent a reply to the questionnaire on Exchange Programmes in the Spring issue of the Newsletter. This has provided useful information which will form the basis for the session on Exchange Programmes at the BAAS conference in Glasgow in April, 1999.

A copy of the questionnaire will be sent this autumn to all American Studies departments which did not reply. The information from the questionnaires will then be summarised on the BAAS Homepage, by January, 1999. Delegates to the BAAS conference who attend the session on Exchange Programme will thereby be in a position to be well-informed well in advance of the BAAS conference.

The current debate on Exchange Programmes was initiated in an editorial in the BAAS Newsletter by the previous editor, Steve Mills, who suggested that, although American Studies programmes which incorporated a period of Study Abroad at an American university within a three-year degree might be unaffected, it may be impossible to continue American Studies four-year degree programmes which included a year at an American university, in the light of declining numbers of applications for a degree in American Studies and the introduction of tuition fees. (BAAS Newsletter, 77, Autumn, 1997). This provoked a vigorous response in the last issue of the Newsletter from William Riches of the University of Ulster, who wrote that ‘the faculty teaching in the American Studies programme at this university will fight to the bitter end to keep the intercalary year.’ (BAAS Newsletter, 78, Spring/Summer, 1998).

Two main questions appear to be emerging in the debate. First, how important is a period of study at an American university as an element in an American Studies degree – a sine qua non; virtually essential; very desirable; of limited value; not necessary? Second, is it necessary for students to go to an American university for a full year and thereby add a fourth year to their degree, or are the benefits of study in America gained sufficiently by a semester at an American university, which is integrated into a three-year degree?

Views on these questions and on any other points relating to Exchange Programmes should be sent to the organiser of the BAAS conference session, Peter Boyle, Department of American & Canadian Studies, University of Nottingham, Nottingham,NG7 2RD, or by e-mail, Peter.Boyle@nottingham.ac.uk

Peter Boyle

Work or Study in the USA: False Oppositions

In the last two issues of ‘The Newsletter’ the question of the comparative role of work versus study in the USA has been raised. Steve Mills introduced the issue in the light of Dearing and the introduction of student fees. His was a timely summary of what choices may lie ahead for American Studies. At the heart of the question is the simple issue of how, in the current circumstances, departments might best ensure that their students have valuable experience in the USA as part of their undergraduate education. He raised the possibility of giving some form of recognition to the kinds of work experience readily available through reputable agencies (such as BUNAC and Council on International Educational Exchange). This was not, in any sense, an attack on the value of study in the USA. To recognise the value of work experience is not to deny the value of study.

William Riches, however, interpreted the remarks precisely as just such an attack and wrote as a kind of defender of the faith: ‘prepared to fight for education, independent thought and to offer students challenges that they should face in the academic community.’

This position misinterprets the points made by Steve Mills and ignores some key issues:

1. In the changing circumstances it may be necessary to think of creative alternatives to traditional educational patterns precisely so as to maintain the challenging environment we all value. Further, the question of the length of the degree (four or three years) is hardly a matter of excellence versus mediocrity but rather an inevitable one in these times. Failure to raise the question at this point is tantamount to taking a stance more akin to the ostrich than the hero.

2. In essence, work experience in the USA brings a number of benefits and responds to current realities. It recognises student and government demand that some form of experiential learning be integrated into all degree studies as a means of ensuring that students are, to some extent, better qualified to enter the job market after graduation. In addition, it demonstrates the direct correlation between the world of work and the world of study. Working in the USA also offers students an experience of American culture as participants rather than observers thus creating precisely the ‘bonus for…graduates’ that William Riches desires: ‘they can prove that they can adjust to a different culture and succeed.’ The adjustment required to work abroad is surely a greater challenge than that required to study abroad when, after all, a classroom in the UK is not a substantially different environment from a classroom in the USA.

As Director of the Council on International Educational Exchange for over 10 years, I was deeply involved in creating work experience opportunities in the USA for UK students (as well as promoting study programmes in the USA). I am now Director of Syracuse University programmes in the UK and part of my responsibility is to develop work experience for US students in this country while maintaining and improving the standards of our academic programmes. I believe, therefore, that it is possible to have a balanced commitment to both study and work abroad.

To go a little further, the combination of work and study creates, I believe, the conditions for a significant enhancement of academic experience. Two examples may suffice: A student of literature would gain insight into the real nature of literary reputation by spending a period in a bookshop, a publishing house or agency, or with a review department of a newspaper. In that context they might experience the degree to which literary reputation is, at least in part, a consequence of promotional activities rather than just aesthetics. Similarly, a student of history could benefit from a period of work in a museum or art gallery where they would have the opportunity to experience the fact that versions of history and culture are constructed precisely by the choices the institutions make of acquisition or display. It is arguable that failure to demonstrate those realities is academically irresponsible. If this is true in the fields of literature and history, it is evidently the case that there exists a direct relationship between academic study and work in the other areas represented in the broad church of American Studies.

In short, we do not face a ‘fight to the bitter end’ to defend study abroad. This ‘struggle’ is a seductive illusion: a ‘heroic’ defence of what is not being attacked. It is ultimately absurd to see work and study as mutually exclusive options when they both serve our shared objectives.

Dr. Michael Woolf, Director, Syracuse University London Centre; Tel: 0171 229 0005 Fax: 0171 792 0791

Research Support

The David Healy Award

In 1977-78 David Healy, Professor of American History at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (UWM) engaged in a faculty exchange with Peter Boyle of the University of Nottingham. An outcome of the exchange was the introduction of an award every second year of a two-year Teaching Assistantship in the Department of History at UWM to a final year student in History or American Studies at the University of Nottingham.

The award celebrates its twentieth anniversary this year, and it has been a resounding success in every respect. All recipients of the award successfully completed an M.A. at UWM, and they have gone on to distinguished careers. Four went on to take a Ph.D. at an American university (Princeton, Johns Hopkins, Rutgers and the University of Iowa). One is now teaching at Texas Christian University in Houston. Another, Mark White, teaches at Eastern Illinois University, after a two-year spell at St. Andrews Ñ he is author of The Cuban Missile Crisis and General Editor of Longman’s forthcoming ten-volume history of the United States. The recipient of the award who is best known to us is Simon Newman, lecturer in American History at Glasgow University, Director of the Andrew Hook Centre for American Studies at Glasgow and the Conference Secretary for the BAAS conference in Glasgow in April, 1999. Recipients of the award who pursued other than academic careers include two teachers, a lawyer, a television documentary-maker and a Foreign Office official.

The award has been a scheme in which everyone has gained and at no cost. UWM has gained a steady supply of high-quality graduate students and Teaching Assistants, who have been screened out by the University of Nottingham’s selection process. The University of Nottingham has gained an attractive offer, which it has within its gift. Above all, the students who have held the award enjoyed a tremendous experience, which in many cases opened up opportunities which transformed their lives.

Peter Boyle

The Barra Foundation Fellowship

The Library Company of Philadelphia and the Historical Society of Pennsylvania each year jointly offer one-month fellowship support to research in residence in their collections by a foreign national scholar living outside the United States. The fellowship is funded by the Barra Foundation, Inc.

The Library Company and the Historical Society are independent research libraries adjacent to each other in Center City Philadelphia. They have complementary comprehensive collections capable of supporting research in a variety of fields and disciplines relating to the history of North America up to about 1900. Founded in 1731, the Library Company was the largest public library in America until the 1850s and thus contains printed materials on every aspect of American culture and society in that period. It has since become a research library of 450,000 books, pamphlets, newspapers and periodicals, as well as 75,000 prints, collections of personal and business papers, along with comprehensive collections of printed materials concerning the political, social and family history of the Philadelphia region.

Together, these two collections are especially strong in Afro-Americana, German-Americana, American Literature and popular culture, history of women, domestic economy, economics and business, medicine, agriculture, natural history, philanthropy, education, art (including Philadelphia area prints and photographs), architecture, technology, and printing and publishing. Both also have significant collections of British and Continental books, reflecting the European background of American culture.

The fellowship supports both post-doctoral and dissertation research. The project proposal should demonstrate that the Library Company and the Historical Society have primary resources central to the research topic. Candidates are encouraged to enquire about the appropriateness of a proposed topic before applying The fellowship is tenable for one month at any time from June 1999 to May 2000. The stipend is $2,000, plus an allowance for travel expenses. The fellow will be assisted in finding reasonable priced accommodations.

Candidates must apply by February 1, 1999. The appointment will be made by March 20. There are no application forms. To apply, send a curriculum vitae, a two to four page description of the project, and one letter of reference to:
James Green
Associate Librarian
Library Company of Philadelphia
1314 Locust Street
Philadelphia, PA 19107
Tel. (215)546-3181
Fax (215)546-5167
E-mail jgreen@librarycompany.org

Note: The Library Company of Philadelphia also offers a number of short-term fellowships for research in its collections only, without restriction by nationality or place of residence.

Applicants for the Barra International Fellowship will automatically be considered for Library Company fellowships if their research topics are appropriate to the Library Company Collections.

Research Award Reports

Report – Karen Wilkinson

Report on Karen Wilkinson’s BAAS Sponsored Research Trip to The United States of America, 12/8/98 – 25/8/98.

After a number of false starts (I’d originally planned to make my trip in May) I arrived in New York amidst a major heatwave in the middle of August. Since I am no great lover of excessively hot weather this, and the fact that I couldn’t initially find my luggage was enough to make me want to get straight back on the plane and return to the familiar and less intimidating territory of Heathrow. Needless to say I didn’t follow my initial instincts, and after negotiating Manhattan bus station I finally arrived at Highland Falls – the home of West Point Military Academy and home to the Constitution Island Association which now takes care of Susan Warner’s family home and archives.

Having visited a number of writers homes in England, I had expected to find the people involved in the Association as interested in Warner’s writing as they were in the house and her connections with the Military Academy. I was therefore a little surprised to find, that although they do have copies of Warner’s published work in the library at the house, that only a passing interest is shown in her work. Perhaps the main reason for this is that the house itself is an important part of American history in it’s own right Ñ one part of the building dates back to the revolutionary period and the island and fortified house had played an important role in defending the area against English attack. That said, with increasing interest being shown by the academic community in Susan Warner as a writer I think that the Association is making a conscious effort to consolidate and organise their own material and knowledge in this area. One of my main reasons for going to Highland Falls was to try to find out information about a chapter from Warner’s first novel The Wide, Wide World that had been left out of the final draft. Unfortunately, I was unsuccessful in my search but, I was able to have free access to Warner’s surviving papers and journals (which are held at both the Association Office and at the Military Academy) which will prove invaluable in my research. I was fortunate enough to speak with Ronnie Coffee (the current President of the Constitution Island Association) and the West Point Historical and Archive departments prior to my visit. Having made earlier contact with these people meant that I was made to feel extremely welcome and everybody concerned did everything they could to ensure that my all too brief visit was as productive as possible.

The final few days of my trip were spent in New York where I took advantage of the wonderful Nineteenth Century literature and periodical collection available at New York Public Library. Since I was only able to spend a very short time at the library, I only had time to look at a very small sample of the materials available. However, having ready access to the work of writers like Hale and Beecher as well as many less well known writers of the period will enable me to add a far greater depth to my thesis than I had previously hoped for. In addition I will now be able to plan future trips with a far clearer idea of what is available and ease of access to the rarer documents. (The NYPL archive collection is divided over a number of sites and prior planning is essential – a lesson I learnt very earlier on in my stay in New York!)

Overall the trip was extremely productive and the material I was able to collect will undoubtedly be of great use to me as I write up my thesis. I would like to extend my thanks to BAAS for awarding me the short term travel award and the wonderful opportunity it gave me to make the trip.

Report – Janet Greenlees

Report of Research Trip to New England for BAAS by Janet Greenlees

I recently spent several weeks in New England conducting research for my DPhil thesis entitled ‘The Impact of Women on Industry: A Comparative Study of the Lancashire and New England Cotton Industries, 1790-1860’. My research was greatly aided by a BAAS Short Term Travel Award. I found extremely useful records in archives in Boston, Cambridge, Lowell and Taunton, not just about the well-known mill girls of Lowell, Massachusetts, but also workers in smaller mills in other parts of New England. This enabled me to compare the business practices of different sized mills concerning labor, especially women. The evidence gathered supports my overall hypothesis that labor influenced the development of business practices in early manufacturing and that the relationship between labor and management was flexible.

Business records revealed a natural concern about the market for cotton goods and the state of the market. This greatly influenced all aspects of business. The majority of mills were water powered throughout the nineteenth century, resulting in the weather greatly affecting continuous mill operations, including flooding, drought and ice jams. These problems would mean offering a workforce continual, full-time work throughout the year would be virtually impossible. Other sources reveal that few women sought year round employment. Rather they took the best paid, available work when necessary. Many letters reveal women took time off for various reasons at different times of the year. When these factors are combined with the shortage of male labor, it could make mill work mutually beneficial to women and manufacturers.

Traditional labor patterns were another problem with which early manufacturers had to contend. Because smaller mills relied on a local labor supply, these mill managers had to be more flexible with work patterns. Local labor practices often included extended holidays, time off to care for family members, market days, and other, unexplained reasons. Smaller mills had greater competition for workers than did the larger corporate mills, because the often could not afford to recruit labor from other areas. Therefore, owners of small mills had to offer wages that were competitive to the local area. The larger, corporate mills, such as those owned by the Boston Associates at Lowell, hired women from all over New England and housed them on mill property. As a result, these companies were able to exert greater control over both the work day and operatives’ lives. There are mentions of Lowell women taking time off to care for relatives, but days off for holidays and traditional activities are not mentioned. Women also left for other mills or other industries which paid better wages particularly after mid-century. Although smaller companies tried to copy the Lowell regimented work day, they found it much more difficult and traditional patterns of labor remained. In spite of their problems regulating both workers and the work day, these smaller companies id not disappear. They remained competitive players in the cotton industry throughout the nineteenth century. This could have resulted from their flexibility in both goods produced and managerial style.

From the early nineteenth century through the 1840’s, mills had difficulty obtaining and retaining skilled labor. In the smaller mills, concern was particularly great. Workers in these mills seemed to have held multiple skills because when there was a shortage of workers, others took over the necessary tasks. It was the corporate mills that introduced the idea of a worker performing one specific task repeatedly, revealing that workers in smaller mills were more highly skilled than those in corporate mills. This probably would have remained the case since larger mills were financially able to replace old machinery more rapidly with new, labor saving devices, which required less skill to operate. Yet the Boston Associates did have some regard for their workers and their abilities, particularly by the 1840’s. Managers considered operatives responses to changes in daily operation, wages and boarding house rates. They also transferred workers to different departments, both from workers requests and abilities, demonstrating that manufacturers valued their workers.

Concern was widespread that American labor conditions were better than in England. Many papers commend not only the higher wages, but also the better living and working conditions in America. Comments about the issue and even the efforts to maintain this edge concentrated on Lowell, almost as if Lowell was a model community. Interestingly, none of the commentators challenged women’s right to work outside the domestic environment, whereas in England the ideal was a male-breadwinner. Instead, American concern centered around the health and moral well-being of the women.

The various sources examined indicate a great diversity within the American cotton industry, both in patterns of work organization, labor issues and business matters. Although Lowell might have housed the largest and most publicized cotton mills, it was by no means the industrial norm.

Research Information: US National Archives (‘Archives II’) at College Park MD

Many members will recall visiting the US National Archives, located between the White House and Capitol Hill, whether as a tourist, to witness Americans filing past those relicts that are the Declaration of Independence and the Bill of Rights, or as researchers in the very different atmosphere of microfilm readers and photocopiers. Since archival microfilm became readily available elsewhere not so many have visited the Pennsylvania Avenue site as was once the case. Fewer still will now need to visit the downtown site given that the US Archives have now essentially completed its long term strategy to decentralise the facilities, not just to regional centres across the country, but specifically out to the Maryland suburbs. Once the Pennsylvania Avenue site had been declared full (back in 1970) ever more material was held at the National Records Center out in Suitland, Maryland. Now the original site holds almost nothing for the professional researcher with the opening of the ‘US National Archives at College Park’ (generally known as Archives II) on 33 acres donated by the University of Maryland.

Archives II (are they implying that next comes Archives III, the movie?) opened for research as far back as 1994. Records held here include: the Nixon Presidential Materials; electronic records; motion picture, sound, and video records; the John F. Kennedy Assassination Records Collection; still pictures; the Berlin Documents Center microfilm; and textual records from most civilian agencies and military records dating from the Second World War; plus cartographic and architectural holdings. A ‘Fax-on-Demand’ service, for use with the handset on a fax machine, gives information on many topics. Tel: 00 1 301 713 6905 or www.nara.gov. Selected textual records have been removed from both the downtown and the Suitland sites to the College Park building, further enhancing the service now on offer at College Park. Records are retrieved for researchers at designated times Monday through Friday for use in the research rooms, though records can be used during evening hours or on Saturday if they have already been retrieved. If researchers can only attend on Saturday or after the last retrieval time, advance arrangements can be made to have records available by calling ahead. The infamous Nixon tapes can be listened to Monday through Friday 0845 – 1600. Fortunately much of what researchers seek is available on microfilm, on video, as maps and in still pictures is available for self-service retrieval.

Some useful phone numbers: (all should be prefixed 001 from the UK) General reference information: 301 713-6800 Nixon Presidential Materials reference: 713-6950 Cartographic reference: 713-7040 Textual reference: 713-7250 Motion Picture, Sound, & Video reference: 713-7060 Electronic Records reference: 713-6645 Kennedy Assassination Records reference: 713-6620 Still Picture reference: 713-6660

Orientation Procedures

Researchers first visiting Archives II for the first time should initially speak with an archivist in room 1000 (‘Researcher Registration’) located off the main lobby. The archivist provides an orientation to both the building and the records, and conducts the registration procedure. This can be more than a dull formality, being a discussion about the research potentials of the available collections with a fellow professional.

Research Rooms

There are the usual research collection restrictions, but personal materials such as briefcases or laptop cases, may be deposited in basement lockers near the cafeteria (a refundable quarter is needed). A complete copy of Rules for Using Historical Records in the National Archives is available through ‘Fax-on-Demand’ or by calling the general reference number. The general inquiry e-mail address is inquire@arch2.nara.gov.

Self-service

Copying Paper to paper copies of most documents can be made on self-service copiers at a cost of 10¢ per page. Microfilm to paper copies are 25¢ per image. Before copying any textual records researchers must show a staff member the original material they wish to duplicate. Self-service Polaroid copiers are available in the Still Picture Research Room that make colour or black and white photographic prints for $8.60. Researchers may copy certain audio-visual records using their own equipment or may rent the use of a dubbing station available in the research room. There is a ‘Fax-on-Demand’ service outlining what cannot be copied (such as the Nixon White House tapes and copyrighted newsreels).

Special Equipment

Researchers may use their own laptop computers, approved scanners (though not hand held ones), typewriters, tape recorders, tape decks, cameras, and other equipment. A phone jack is available for researchers who wish to transmit data, though this is unlikely to be of much use to overseas researchers as only local or US 800 numbers are accessible. Basic details can be found on the National Archives Homepage, with more specific details on www.nara.gov/nara/dc/Archives2

Hours

Monday & Wednesday 0845 – 1700 Tuesday, Thursday & Friday 0845 – 2100 Saturday 0845 – 1645 Closed Sunday

Location and Directions

Archives II is located at 8601 Adelphi Road, near the University of Maryland ‘s College Park campus. From the Beltway take the New Hampshire Avenue exit south, taking a left at the second light onto Adelphi Road. After a couple of miles there is a large Archives II green sign on the left. Turn into the entrance for the ample free parking. Warning: do not attempt to find Archives II by first finding the university. That will lead you into a substantial and unnecessary detour as though on university land the complex is totally separate and is not accessible whether by car or by foot from the main campus. There is a shuttle bus service for registered University of Maryland students and faculty from the centre of campus, but others should use their own car, or use the bus service from Prince George’s Plaza. Do NOT take the Metro to the College Park station, which is on quite the wrong side of the vast campus. Instead take the Metro to Prince George’s Plaza and then take the R3 Metrobus, serving the Greenbelt, Prince George’s Plaza, and Ft. Totten Metrorail Green Line stations, and stops at Archives II. For a timetable update contact Metro at (202) 637-7000. As it does not run on Saturdays a free researcher shuttle bus runs on Saturday only between the Prince George’s Plaza Metrorail Green Line station (Belcrest Road side) and the College Park building on the following schedule: Depart Metro: 0815 0915 1015 1115 12:15 1315 1415 1515 1615 1700 Depart Archives: 0845 0945 1045 1145 12:45 1345 1445 1545 1645 1730

Alternatively a staff shuttle bus runs on the hour from 0800 to 1700 Monday through Friday between the College Park and the Pennsylvania Avenue site. Visiting researchers may use it on a space available basis. To confirm these details see www.nara.gov/nara/directions or write to:
National Archives at College Park, 8601 Adelphi Road, College Park, MD 20740-6001, USA.
(Tel: 00 1 301 713 6800). Having visited the complex with British postgraduate access in mind I have to say I was impressed at the level of service provided. The move out to the suburbs seems to have involved a change of culture in the organisation, for where I was once confronted with ‘No, now what’s the question?’ I was instead greeted with ‘How can we best help you move your project along’. The days of underfunding and overcrowding in the Pennsylvania Avenue site were never conducive to the provision of a user-friendly service. Do however visit the Web site, and do consider making use of the ‘Fax-on-Demand’ system which can provide vital prior information to ensure a productive visit. The details of this system alone run to about 10 A4 sheets, but can be accessed at http://www.nara.gov . Details range from how to opening hours to what is held by era, region, and source. But most of all I would urge all would be visitors to read up on how to reach to facility. If you remember nothing else when you visit Archives II ignore College Park and the University of Maryland campus completely, and either follow signs from the Beltway straight to Archives II on Adelphi Road, or take the Metro to Prince George’s Plaza for a transfer to Metrobus R3.

Steve Mills

Letters to the Editor

Historical Traveling Exhibit

This letter is a solicitation for assistance in seeking venues for an historical traveling exhibit depicting the revisionist history of the contributions of Blacks and Spanish in the Western part of the United States and their development. The original research for the development of this exhibit was developed and implemented by Dr.Cortez Williams of the University of New Mexico and his students. Dr.Williams teaches a course titled, ‘Blacks in the West,’ which is offered in our American Studies Department. This work is a complication of fourteen years of intensive research and grant from the New Mexico Endowment of Humanities. Numerous others who want to see the world to share this exhibit have provided some sponsorship. We can sincerely say that there is nothing else like this in the world. However, we want to share it with all of the American Studies Departments throughout European countries. This exhibit is also a work of art used to illustrate the complex diversity of cultures, nationalities, ethnic groupings, racial and religious mixtures of political groups of the U.S. West.

This exhibit will raise the consciousness of all its patrons to include the rich history of the true West that provides contemporary viewers with and expressive interpretation of the past. This exhibit provides many interesting stories about Blacks who played major roles in the historical unfolding of the West. The exhibit depicts people like Sebastian Rodriquez, drummer for De Vargas in 1692 to Stagecoach Mary, the woman with strongest right hand in the West. Each art piece has an historical panel that creates a bridge between the past and present by tapping into the adventurous and historical spirit of the viewer allowing h/her to get a taste of the Old West. The art work has been designed in such a way to stimulate the imagination as well as inform the viewer. Dr.Williams will make himself and others available for lectures if you wish, but it may not be necessary. We recognize that this could be expensive and working to defer some of the course. If you are truly interested in such an exhibit, you may see some of it on our web site at http://www.blackexhibit.com.

Currently there are forty-two pieces to the exhibit and we add additional pieces at each venue. The exhibit is shipped in 5-6 crates weighing a total of 500 pounds. It is estimated that the exhibit uses approximately 500 square feet of wall space. You may have the exhibit for 30 to 90 days at a rate of $500, plus shipping and transportation insurance cost. All venues are responsible for their own public service announcements, press releases or advertising for the exhibit. We ask only that you send us a copy of any and type of releases. Posters are available to help defray some of the cost. You may see posters on the Web site. Additional information will be provided upon request by letter or e-mail: cortez@unm.edu, or you may call 1-(505)880-0686. This exhibit will be traveling for only five years and already it has been traveling for 18 months. The exhibit is currently booked through April, 1999. Would you be interested in future booking? Cortez Williams, Ph.D. Project Director/Curator CW/jag New Mexico African-American Research Group University of New Mexico Division of African-American Studies 4000 Mesa Vista Hall Albuquerque, NM 87131-1581 USA tel: 1-(505)880-0686 fax: 1-(505)880-0401

To Err is Human

In the rubric News from American Studies Centres, the University of Central Lancashire was mistakenly indicated as the University of Central Lancaster. Apologies to our Central Lancashire colleagues.

The report on Candida Hepworth’s excellent paper, ‘The Colonial Space of the Chicano/Chicana’ presented at the BAAS Norwich panel on The Literatures of Colonial America, went astray in the mail. Please see the missing report in the section Norwich: The Sequel.

Alex Goody, who appeared as ‘he’ in the previous New Members issue of the Newsletter, is in fact a ‘she’. Your Editor, feeling horribly sheepish, apologises to Alex Goody, with thanks for her good humour about it all, and wishes to reiterate the fact that no gender essentialism is at play here. Dr. Goody has taken up a Lectureship in the Faculty of Art and Cultural Studies at Falmouth College of Arts in Cornwall.

Contacts

QAA Committee

Douglas Tallack has recently been appointed to a Quality Assurance Agency committee to examine quality issues as they affect inter-disciplinary, multi-disciplinary and modular subjects. This committee is likely to meet for a total of five days in the period November 1998 to June 1999. Would anyone who has views on this matter which they would like raised please contact Douglas. Douglas can be contacted as follows:

Professor Douglas Tallack
School of American & Canadian Studies
University of Nottingham
Nottingham NG7 2RD
UK
Tel: 0115 951 4262
Fax: 0115 951 4270
Email: douglas.tallack@nottingham.ac.uk

School Homepage: http://www.nottingham.ac.uk/american/
Director, Arts and Humanities Research Board Project: Three American Cities Homepage: http://www.nottingham.ac.uk/3cities/

BAAS Website Noticeboard

A new development due to arrive on the BAAS webpage at http://human.ntu.ac.uk/baas, hopefully by the new year, will be a noticeboard open to all members. Details have yet to be thrashed out with the webmistress (aka Dick Ellis) but the facility should allow members to post messages concerning conferences, courses, lectures, publishing possibilities and anything else relating to American Studies that needs publicising.

Book Reviews

American Exceptionalism by Deborah L. Madsen

Deborah Madsen’s book charts the development of American exceptionalism as a concept which has contributed to American cultural identity and which has resulted in acutely different manifestations in both literature and film, from Moby Dick to Rambo. Madsen proposes that ”from the Colonial period, through the Revolution, again during the upheavals of the Civil War and into the twentieth century, Americans have agonised over what they are and where they are headed. Exceptionalism is the ideology to which such thoughts most frequently return.” Her intention is to ”explain the historical context of contemporary uses of exceptionalism in a form comprehensible to the student, non-specialist, scholar and civilian”. To this end, she provides a clear and concise introduction to the origins of exceptionalism in seventeenth-century Puritan sermons, poetry and prose, and suggests that ”it is evidence of the power of exceptionalist rhetoric that it has given rise to three centuries of counter-argument”. Her account begins with the Massachusetts Bay colonists, who believed that as Puritans (bringing with them the exceptionalist rhetoric of the Tudors) their spiritual and political destiny as a ‘redeemer nation’, was to create a model for Europe in the New world. While exceptionalist claims were not surprisingly contested by native American writers, Madsen points out that some native Americans engaged in the rhetoric of exceptionalism in order to promote Indian assimilation and to argue for a place from which they could share an exceptional destiny.

Exceptionalism was specifically employed to explain and justify the expansion of the United States both westwards and into the south west. Madsen analyses pictorial and filmic representations of the West and discusses twentieth century interpretations of the conquest of the West in the work of Owen Wister and Zane Grey, the cinema of John Ford and later ”spaghetti” Westerns. She outlines the Chicano response to the experience of annexation of the Hispanic south-west and the ideology of the ‘Manifest Destiny’ which attempted to justify this. In her final chapter, Madsen discusses the work of Larry McMurtry, Thomas Pynchon and Toni Morrison and their different responses to and deconstruction of the myths on which the exceptionalist assumption is based. The continuing power of exceptionalism as authority and justification for foreign political and military involvement (in this case south-east Asia), is discussed with reference to the representation of the Vietnam conflict in contemporary fiction and film.

Madsen’s account provides an introduction to the concept of American exceptionalism and outlines the diverse interpretations of an exceptionalist rhetoric which has led to its deployment in support of dramatically contradictory claims. By virtue of its brevity (less than 200 pages), this is a summary which describes the tip of the conceptual iceberg. The necessary engagement with a multiplicity of perspectives, from the seventeenth to the twentieth century, and the inherent complexity of charting American exceptionalism as it influenced and was influenced by the evolution of diverse cultural identities, is accommodated in a coherent and comprehensive account. Madsen presents the groundwork (not to mention a great deal of the homework) for the ”student, non-specialist, scholar and civilian”, and successfully whets the appetite for further exploration of an ideologically powerful and enduring concept.

Tiffany McKirdy, University of Glasgow

Tomcat In Love by Tim O’Brien: Do not underestimate Thomas’s gibbering

Tim O’Brien is perhaps best known for his explorations, both fictional and factual, of America’s part (and his own) in the Vietnam War. His war memoir
If I Die in a Combat Zone (1973) recounted his tour of duty from 1969 to 1970. His fantasy novel Going After Cacciato (1978), his collection of inter-related war stories The Things They Carried (1990) and his mystery novel In The Lake of the Woods (1994) are all powerful works of fiction where O’Brien has managed to create three very different novelistic forms, all of which reflect the sense of uncertainty, betrayal and outrage commonly associated by Americans with the events of the Vietnam War. O’Brien’s other two books to date, Northern Lights (1975) and The Nuclear Age (1981) (both relatively unknown here in the UK), while following a more conventional novelistic structure, still carry as a central theme the concerns both of returned veterans and of their non-combatant peers. His books regularly appear as set reading on college courses devoted to the Vietnam War. It would seem, then, that Tim O’Brien’s position in the American literary canon has been securely cemented into place: Tim O’Brien is a Vietnam War author. Or is he?

O’Brien has, this Autumn, produced Tomcat in Love, a new novel which is being marketed by his publisher under the somewhat surprising new umbrella of romantic humour. According to the American publisher’s jacket blurb, Tomcat in Love represents a quirky love story which is ‘by turns hilarious, outrageous, romantic, and deeply moving’. The sales pitch goes on to say that, in an apparently astonishing move away from his usual Vietnam War combat material, O’Brien’s new book represents a ‘battle of the sexes’ whose main protagonist, Thomas H. Chippering (the Tomcat of the title), is ‘a blundering, modern-day Don Juan who embodies the desires and bewilderment of men everywhere’. A radical change indeed, apparently.

When the new novel first appeared in American bookshops in September this year the initial reaction, in the press and on the Internet, consisted of an almost uniform appreciation of O’Brien’s brilliantly funny and successful new departure into comedy (the exception was a rather viperish New York Times review which lamented O’Brien’s failure to live up to his past literary glories). It is, of course, early days yet, and there is plenty of time ahead for some serious critical analysis of the book. For example, I look forward eagerly to seeing what the feminists and gender specialists will make of it – O’Brien (possibly intentionally, given his low opinion of some of the more caustic feminist criticism levelled at his past work) has, in the creation of his woman-obsessed antihero Thomas Chippering, laid himself open to some barbed charges of misogyny. For now, though, the general opinion – positive or negative – is that Tim O’Brien has changed course, from war to love, from the torment inherent in combat to the comedy inherent in sex. However, I remain unconvinced by claims of change.

I don’t feel that much has altered at all: at the heart of this new book there still lies O’Brien’s relentless obsession with human behaviour under stress. In O’Brien’s seventh book I detect the same complex examinations of the nature of truth and fiction which have appeared in his previous work, including even his most explicitly autobiographical war stories; I detect the same blending of the real with the unreal (and even the surreal); I detect the same interest in the associations of language as well as in its literal meanings (see Thomas Chippering’s ‘private dictionary of love’); and I detect the same refusal to moralise on any count: sex, murder, love, arson, deception, grievous bodily harm (to language as well as to people). All the old familiar acts of psychological and bodily violence, previously associated in O’Brien’s novels with war combat, are now committed by a variety of characters who, were this mere comedy, might simply be drawn as outlandish lovesick fruitcakes. However, in Tomcat in Love O’Brien has chosen to draw his characters as ordinary (albeit eccentric) people who happen to have found themselves living their lives in extremis and who are modifying their behaviour accordingly.

Tomcat in Love is narrated in the first-person by its central character, the egotistical linguistics professor Thomas H. Chippering (the pun on ‘gibbering’ should not go unremarked). Tom is obsessed in almost equal measure by women, by language and by his own imagined greatness (this character will be god’s gift to feminists, appearing to prove all the worst theories about male behaviour traits). Tom is in turn cuckolded by his bizarre wife Lorna Sue, who leaves him for a hairy tycoon whose name Tom cannot bring himself to utter (names are important in O’Brien’s fiction, therefore we must assume a certain significance – in Tom’s case, almost a castration – in this non-utterance). Tom’s ex-wife Lorna Sue is the capricious but irresistible child-woman after which every man allegedly hankers (another one for the feminists to play with), while his in-laws constitute the family from hell. The new woman in his life, Mrs Robert Kooshof (note Tom’s difficulty with identifying her as female), pursues and consumes Tom with the single-mindedness of a snake swallowing an egg. The college kids Tom teaches are either ‘young lovelies’ (the girls), who manipulate him mercilessly, or ‘troglodytes’ (the boys), who seem to possess only a hazy awareness of the existence of a world outside their own limited experience.

All of O’Brien’s characters are exquisitely drawn and the central players are woven up into complicated, multi-faceted marionettes, persistently and disastrously pulling on one another’s strings. Their behaviour and character flaws may seem, on the surface, like the stuff of pure farce. However, O’Brien’s new novel cannot be passed off as the mere comic cuts implied by the jacket blurb. Tom repeats in a sinister aside throughout the novel: ‘I am a war hero. I am hazardous. Do not underestimate me.’ Thus, in Tomcat in Love, O’Brien’s comedy is always tempered with a sense of menace; Tom Chippering’s behaviour is a constant reminder of the thinness of the line which separates the merely laughable from the horribly dangerous. The humour is present in O’Brien’s new book: there is irony and gentle humour, along with the frustrated smile that comes from observing the dedicated self-destroyer; there are even a few belly-laughs. But also there is always the possibility for the reader that the next turn of the page will reveal the true violence and horror behind Tom’s obsessions.

So, has Tim O’Brien changed direction? Is Tomcat in Love a black comedy? Is it an example of outrageous misogyny, or perhaps simply a romantic farce? Or is it, as the New York Times reviewer suggested, a cruel parody of the post traumatic stress disorder suffered by so many Vietnam War veterans in America? Well, the critics will pay their money and make their choices. My own view is that, whatever the chosen critical interpretations, this book is unmistakably the stuff of the old Tim O’Brien as well as of the new. To be sure, Tomcat in Love tells us a comic tale of an incorrigible womaniser receiving back some of his own medicine, but it also makes us re-examine what we think about imagination and truth, about the perceived and the real; and it makes us face those thoughts that we’d never admit to openly: what we’d like to do to our loved ones when they refuse to keep loving us back. Nasty stuff. Disquieting stuff. Maybe even Monica Lewinsky stuff, if that’s the kind of analogy you like to make. Thomas Chippering’s ineptitude and inability to ‘commit’ to reality is comical to outside observers – the stuff of true farce – but it’s also menacing, threatening and life-destroying to the people involved in it: the tale is pure Tim O’Brien. Plus ca change, plus c’est la meme chose.

Lynn Wharton is a postgraduate research student at King Alfred’s College, Winchester. She is currently working on a MPhil/PhD thesis exploring the work of Tim O’Brien.

Women, America, and Movement: Narratives of Relocation edited by Susan L. Roberson

If migrations and movement constitute the promise of ‘America,’ then the patriarchal imposition of stasis on women, either as domestic icons, social ornaments or political dependents, effectively renders them adversaries of adventure, freedom, and the rugged individualism deemed necessary for progress. But as this new collection of essays suggests, there is a complicated, provocative, and decidedly progressive relation between ‘women, America and movement’ expressed in narratives from what can be contentiously called ‘the first American novel,’ Charlotte Temple, through Gertrude Stein’s rhetorical ‘America,’ to the contemporary mixed blood fictions of Louise Erdrich. These narratives articulate what editor Susan L. Roberson dubs ‘a politics of relocation,’ a term that takes us from Michel Chevalier’s observation in the early republican era of the restlessness of ‘Americans,’ through Huck Finn’s famous ‘lighting out’ for the West, to Jack Kerouac’s emblematic road trips, all via Adrienne Rich’s feminist notion of a ‘politics of location.’ Insisting that our perspectives are shaped not only by our geographical and historical locations but by inhabiting gendered bodies in particular space and time, Rich anticipated later theorists, especially post-colonialist critics, who redefine location as a dynamic site of colliding and multiplying social relations. It is only a short step to understanding that ‘writing is itself a location, a site for the construction of further spaces of power and knowledge, spaces that are also gendered’ (7). The essays in this collection show how women have cultivated these sites, thereby making a strong case for including the discourse and politics of relocation as yet another category in our critical discussions of identity, agency, narrative, and even ‘America,’ long the privileged site of mobility as a national past-time.

But in any theoretical endeavor organized around sexual difference, there is bound to be fissures around the concept of ‘woman.’ Despite the admirable culturally diversity of this collection, it is not sufficiently self-conscious of those fissures. In Kaye Gibbons’ white antiracist fiction, for example, the main character’s ‘physical and conceptual dislocation’ from an abusive home ‘enables her ultimate relocation, both literal and ideological’ in a self-willed, reinvented ‘family.’ Other white female writers, like Constance Fenimore Woolson or the diarists of the Western expansion, actively seek dislocation or discover in an imposed uprooting the dislodging of ideological constraints necessary for increased feminine agency. Women of color have no such luxury and their narrative representations of relocation seem, on the whole, more tragic yet also more potentially productive. For example, Sandra Cisneros’ characters cross and recross a border which is simultaneously geographical, cultural, linguistic and epistemological. Yet, for women defined by patriarchal and racist mores, there is no ‘other side.’ Mary Lee Paik’s autobiography of Korean immigration reveals the destructive simultaneity of cultural displacement and discriminatory racial placement in dominate US society, an imposed relocation that forces her to ‘home’ and that most American of dreams, ‘freedom,’ as interior and metaphysical. Native American fiction, for all the dislocations it narrates, is structured around a return home and a recognition of attachment to place, a structural element of male as well as female writing. This raises the question of how the cultural specificity of a ‘politics of relocation’ complicates or transcends gender difference. Finally, Bharati Mukherjee’s novel Jasmine can be read as rejecting the essentialism at the heart of cultural assimilation, thus pushing us into the next phase of cultural politics where we can begin to complicate and perhaps dismantle the seemingly intractable Western dialectic of self and other. Nevertheless, all of these essays depict to some extent ‘the center in crisis,’ and thus contribute to the ongoing critical project of American Studies.

Ivy Schweitzer, Dartmouth College

Black Movements in America by Cedric J. Robinson

Black Movements in America is a concise and informative account into the history of black activism. Cedric J. Robinson’s work is composed of intriguing tales of resistance and rebellion dating from pre-Revolutionary America, following through the Civil War and Civil Rights movement and finally coming to rest with contemporary conflicts against white supremacy in the lamentable struggle for equality.

Robinson is a Professor at the University of California, Santa Barbara in the field of Black Studies and Political Science. His other works include Black Marxism (1983) and The Terms of Order (1980). In Black Movements in America, Robinson highlights the multi-faceted nature of black American culture by journeying through the trials and tribulations of black people in the American history. Condemned to a life of servitude African Americans were inappropriately given the hope of equality through the Declaration of Independence. Robinson exposes the unfulfilled promise of equality still felt in America today, his contemporary assessment is explored in correlation with the ideals of such prominent black leaders as Marcus Garvey, Martin Luther King Jnr and Malcom X.

Robinson appropriates an unusual and interesting perspective on black American history. In particular he pays detailed attention to the role of African American women and the nature of their two fold oppression based on colour and gender. He also relates the black experience to that of the Native Americans and draws comparisons between the treatment of both races and shows how they forged an alliance in an attempt to contest the Europeans. Impressively Robinson also uses accounts from Gwendolyn Midlo Hall which helps to define the research within a particular geographical region, that of Louisiana.

Unfortunately at times the narrative seems to be exceedingly preoccupied with too much detail. This manifests itself in lists of statistics and dates which would be far more appropriately placed as footnotes. The result of too much additional and uninteresting detail breaks up the flow of the text and therefore the account becomes somewhat unimaginative and heavy going.

Nevertheless, Robinson’s book embarks on unfamiliar ground with enticing tales that have been left untold for generations concerning the plight of the African American against servitude and segregation. The history of the African American activism is dealt with in a chronological order opening with the arrival of the African on American soil and then exploring early black resistance including marronage and the political problems which arose during the institution of slavery and how the problem was left to fester. Controversially, Robinson points his finger at many prominent political figures and exposes their pro-slavery tendencies.

The tempo of the work abruptly increases when Robinson relates the disappointment felt in the black community at the unsettled covenant during the period of Reconstruction which succeeded the American Civil War. The major disappointment of this text is Robinson’s decision to close his research in the late 60s early 70s leaving the reader anticipating a concluding chapter of black activism spanning the last decade and a half. Despite this Black Movements in America is essential reading for anyone interested in black politics and history.

Ruth Doughty, Keele University

Four Reasons to be a Member of BAAS

As you know, BAAS organises of financially supports conferences (national, regional and postgraduate), produces a Newsletter, runs a Website, and offers reduced subscription to The Journal of American Studies. However, you might not know that BAAS is active on a ‘political’ front on behalf of American Studies and during the terms of office of the current and previous Chairs of BAAS this role has become more noticeable and – just now – is crucial. Everyone involved in American Studies benefits, not least postgraduates who need the subject to flourish so that there are posts and grants to apply for, and so I hope you will photocopy this item and pass it to members of staff and postgraduates in your department. (My apologies to signed-up members.)

Will there be a UCAS Code for American Studies? Thanks to the vigilance of colleagues at Swansea, in particular, Phil Davies as Chair of BAAS, was able to organise a letter-writing campaign to resist UCAS/HESA’s proposal to remove certain course codes, including that of American Studies. If this proposal goes ahead it will be disastrous for recruitment purposes but at least our views have been made very strongly.

What will replace Teaching Quality Assessment? As a consequence of another letter-writing campaign encouraged by Phil Davies, he and I were invited to QAA in Gloucester. We had a meeting with QAA’s Chief Executive, John Randall, and other senior colleagues and we believe that we have been successful in preventing American Studies being lumped in with English in QAA’s ‘benchmarking’ exercise. We hope that a non-language Area Studies/inter/multidisciplinary benchmarking panel will be established with American Studies playing a significant role.

Will American Subjects be squeezed out of the 16-19 curriculum? Changes to the national curriculum being proposed by the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (formerly SCAA) seriously threaten the study of American history and literature, among other American subjects, at A- and A/S-level. Judie Newman, previous Chair of BAAS, and I have visited QCA and, supported by many colleagues, have made representations against the changes. Other members are currently on Examination Boards and BAAS is financially supporting a programme of regional Teachers and/or VI Form/Access Conferences to drum up or at least maintain support for American subjects at grassroots level.

Will there be an American Studies panel for the next Research Assessment Exercise? BAAS has helped to give the subject the necessary profile to ensure that there will be a panel in 2001. The ‘benchmarking’ developments outlined above point to a welcome correspondence between teaching and research assessment structures.

Please encourage your staff and postgraduate colleagues to support BAAS’ efforts on their behalf by becoming members. They should contact Dr Jenel Virden, Secretary BAAS, Department of American Studies, University of Hull, HULL HU6 7RX. Email: J.Virden@amstuds.hull.ac.uk

Douglas Tallack (Chair, BAAS Development Sub-Committee)

New Members

The British Association of American Studies is pleased to welcome the following new members:

Jonathan Bell is preparing an M. Phil at Cambridge University on the nature and importance of Republican Party ideology in the 1940s and 1950s, with particular reference to the US Senate. In the next academic year he plans to carry out research in the Senatorial archives at the University of Maryland (College Park).

Holly Lynn Boren is Academic Administrator of the Washington International Studies Council in Oxford. She holds a Ph. D. in American Literature from University College London.

Nicola Carr is Commissioning Editor at Edinburgh University Press, and has been involved in developing the BAAS Paperback Series.

Brian Jarvis lectures in American literature at Loughborough University. He is the author of Postmodern Geographies: The Geographical Imagination in Contemporary American Culture (Pluto, 1998).

Lee Jenkins lectures in English and American Literature at University College, Cork. His Ph. D. (at Cambridge) was on the poetry of Wallace Stevens. He is now completing a monograph on Stevens, articles on Frederick Douglas, and co-editing a collection of essays titled Locations of Modernism.

Mark Leahy is carrying out research on contemporary American poetry (with an emphasis on language poetry) at the University of Leeds. As well, he is an editor of Poetry and Audience magazine at Leeds. His other interests include contemporary visual arts, theatre and performance.

James Lyons is a doctoral student at the University of Nottingham, where he is preparing a these on ‘Pre-Millenial Tension: Representations of Seattle in Contemporary Culture.’ His interests include urban and visual culture, film, US-Mexico Border culture, Harold Lloyd, youth culture and detective fiction.

Mark Masoliver teaches History and Politics at Harris City Technology College in Upper Norwood, London.

Jason Mulloy is completing his Ph. D. research at Leeds on ‘Writing for the Space Age: William Burroughs in Contemporary Culture.’ His research interests also include the treatment of literary space (on which he is co-editing a collection of essays) and the history of cinema.

Rachel Palma recently received her B.A, and is planning to continue her studies by doing an M.A in American Politics.

Leslie Peel, a recent graduate of the Open University, has begun research for an M.Litt in History at the University of Stirling. She is principally interested in Scottish Loyalists at the time of American Revolution.

Shelley Saguaro holds a Ph. D., and lectures at Cheltenham and Gloucester College of Higher Education.

Theresa Saxon is a postgraduate at Manchester Metropolitan, where she is carrying out research on Henry James and Herman Melville.

Robert Ward is researching the work of the writer Nelson Algren and his connection with the penal system in America from 1930 to the 1970s. He is interested as well in writing from American prisons, such as that of Malcolm Braly and James Blake, and the 1930s.

Sheryl Christine Wilson is a Ph. D. student at the University of the West of England, School of Cultural Studies, looking at the discourses of Selfhood articulated in confessional television talk shows with specific focus on the Oprah Winfrey Show.

Peter Williams is Distinguished Professor of Religion and American Studies at Miami University, Ohio. He is the author of Popular Religion in America: Symbolic Change and the Modernisation Process in Historical Perspective, America’s Religions: Traditions and Cultures, and Houses of God: Region, Religion and Architecture in the United States. As well, he has edited the Encyclopedia of the American Religious Experience and Encyclopedia of American Social History.

Editorial

In preparing my first issue as editor of the BAAS Newsletter, I have been truly overwhelmed by the generosity of colleagues. First of all, I would like to thank Steve Mills, previous Editor of the Newsletter, for his excellent advice and for his hard work in the past. Congratulations to Steve for a job well done.

I would like to express my gratitude as well to members of the BAAS Board, past and present, for their assistance, with special thanks to Judie Newman, Phil Davies, Jenel Virden, Jay Kleinberg and Janet Beer for their sage counsel and unfailing good humour. Thanks are due as well to the Arts Faculty of the University of Glasgow, particularly to Mark Ward, Dean of the Arts Faculty, for his unflagging support of American Studies; to Simon Newman, Director of American Studies; to Cathy Dowling; to Marie Tate for her computer savvy and for her patience in suffering fools (i.e. editors) stoically; and to Sean Groundwater for his graphic flair. Gerard Sweeney, of Computing Services, earned my undying gratitude for zapping a virus which I feared had devoured this entire issue of the Newsletter. Richard Ellis, Assistant Editor, has provided invaluable assistance in making the Newsletter available on the Web.

As Editor, I would like for the Newsletter to act as a forum in which BAAS members can not only discuss professional issues which affect our discipline but also exchange information about what is happening in American Studies all over Britain. For this, I have been fortunate enough to assemble a team of correspondents from institutions all over Britain who have provided me with items about conferences, calls for papers, publications by individual members, research grants, and so forth.

As Editor, I welcome suggestions from members about the content and style (lively and informal, it is hoped!) of the Newsletter, and am sure that the Letters to the Editor section will be overflowing with good ideas. Cliched though it may be to say so, the Newsletter will only be as interesting and informative as its subscribers wish to make it. This issue begins with reports from the BAAS Norwich Conference, followed by information from American Studies Centres and diverse other rubrics. The Forum column is a new feature designed to provoke debate among subscribers on issues that are relevant to us all. The kick-off for the first Forum column is provided by Simon Newman, Director of American Studies at the University of Glasgow, with his essay ‘United States 2, Rest of the World 0: The Promise of Multicultural Football.’

This issue, because of logistic considerations related to the transfer of the Newsletter from one institution to another, will reach members in June. In the future, however, plans are to publish one issue in November and another in late March/early April. For the November 1998 issue, contributors are asked to send items to me (on disk if humanly possible, or by e-mail) by 15 October. Once again, my thanks to fellow BAAS members for your support.

Susan Castillo, Editor
Department of English Literature
University of Glasgow
Glasgow G12 8QQ
Tel: 0141-330 6393
Fax: 0141-330 4601
Email: S.Castillo@englit.arts.gla.ac.uk

Norwich BAAS Conference 16-19 April 1998

The BAAS 1998 conference, which took place on 16-19 April at the University of East Anglia, was impeccably organized and well attended, with panels and lectures on widely diverse topics. Our thanks to the chairs of each session, who provided the following reports. It is hoped that panel chairs who were unable to provide reports for this issue will be able to do so for the Autumn Newsletter. Congratulations to Allan Lloyd Smith and his team at UEA for a job well done!

BAAS Chair’s Report 1997-8

There have been a number of promising developments this year. The Oxford Institute for American Studies is now under construction and may open as early as autumn 1999. Daniel Howe, the Director Designate is keen to foster links with BAAS, and may host a BAAS conference in the fairly near future. Liverpool John Moore’s University has opened its American Studies Centre. The Eric Mottram Collection has opened at King’s College, London – a research archive centred on American literature and culture and a welcome memorial to a man whom many of us will remember warmly. The plan at the University of Glasgow is to mark the retirement of Andrew Hook by opening its Andrew Hook Centre for American Studies this year.

We have also been pleased by the results in the TQA – despite the hours of effort which it entails – with high scores received already by Keele, University of Central Lancs, Nottingham, Birmingham, Reading, Hull, Liverpool John Moore’s, Brunel, Canterbury Christchurch, Wolverhampton, and UEA. Since the scores are awarded over a longish period BAAS will be collecting information from institutions. (Information welcome.)

The RAE rumbles on into the next century. BAAS commented on the RAE consultation document, essentially emphasising the desirability of a joint North/Latin American panel. We also drew particular attention to the need for effective and equal consultation between subject panels which need Americanist input e.g. Literature and History.

On the defence front, we had various dealings with the QAA (Quality Assurance Agency), concerning QAA proposals for change to the External examiner system. Broadly speaking, the proposal is for a central bank of examiners trained by QAA OR by subject associations like ours. These are the ‘Subject Benchmarking Teams’. The suggestion has also been made that money may in some way eventually be dependant upon the views of these teams. There are to be trials of the new system in 1998 in Scotland and Wales. (Originates from Dearing Recommendation 25). There is as yet no guarantee that there will be an American Studies benchmarking team – which clearly exposes us to the risks of being swallowed by English or History. The proposed areas for QAA work on benchmarking include the categories ‘History’ and ‘English and American Studies’. We need to press hard for an American Studies team, on the model of the RAE and TQA. Otherwise we risk subordination to the demands of another discipline in this exercise – AND we weaken our position overall. Following several conversations with John Randall, BAAS was placed on the list of subject associations to be consulted, and I then received an invitation to attend a meeting at which BAAS could give its views and ‘contribute its expertise to the refining of the new system’, for which they proposed to charge me £45. (Members may have seen my letter to the THES protesting about this.) I declined the invitation but Janet Beer (paid for by another institution) went in my stead, and has kept us fully informed. It is worth noting that we have also been liaising on this matter with both the English Subject Association (CCUE) – Janet Beer has attended their meetings – and the History at the Universities Defence Group. Professor Chris Clark of the University of Warwick is the Americanist on the HUDG panel. There is no equivalent representation on CCUE. Phil Davies has also alerted the American Politics group to the issues. It looks as if opposition to the whole ‘benchmarking’ idea is growing but it is still an area where we have to keep up full pressure. BAAS will be responding to the consultation document by 22 May and all views are welcome. Members are encouraged to exert pressure on this issue wherever they see an opportunity.

I also have to report the demise of the British Academy Overseas Conference grants scheme, about which we have protested. Although this only involved about 200 awards of some £300 each p.a. it was better than nothing – which is what as Americanists we now appear to have. There is no other source of public money for us. (Unlike scientists or those who can rely on the British Council or other governments.) It is apparently possible still to apply to the BA small research grants scheme if the conference is an ‘integral part of your research programme’ , but that is certainly less all-embracing than the previous scheme. Unless other sources are found, BAAS may have to think about how best to use the short term awards scheme in this respect. On the plus side, more Americanists appear to be getting research awards from Leverhulme/Humanities Research Board, and several of those whose names were supplied to the BA database seem to be having some input to the process.

BAAS has also had a certain amount of media presence this year – largely because with Bill Clinton under siege the Secretary appeared on more than 20 radio programmes. Both he and Mick Gidley have been heavily involved in the Shaker exhibition at the Barbican. More humbly the Chair was interviewed at length – and inaccurately – by the Philadelphia Enquirer on British reactions to the Louise Woodward case. And braved a Louise Woodward demonstration to meet Hillary Clinton during her autumn visit to Britain. Other BAAS members have been roped in by Andrew Lloyd Webber to write programme notes for his new musical. It’s often not appreciated just how many random enquiries of this type are fielded by BAAS members – from schoolkids working on A level projects to wargames fanatics and Native American buffs. It is easy in a summing up like this to make it sound as if BAAS is all about policies and plans but it is worth emphasising that much of the most important work members do involves a mass of apparently small tasks at the micro level, fielding enquiries from the public and press, and offering specialist input to various cultural activities. I am grateful to all those who have fielded such enquiries in the past three years.

It looks as if we will be able to offer the BAAS Archive (on permanent loan) to the University of Birmingham Library. We are grateful to D.S. Porter, a retired member for the offer of a complete run of the Newsletter. If you have useful material please HANG ON TO IT and send me a letter, as the spare room in Newcastle is now full. I will be seeing the archivist in May when I can also pass on my own papers.

1997-8 again saw a good crop of conferences and scholarly meetings, which included the BAAS/ American Politics Group Colloqium in London in November ( Phil Davies as co-chair), two Postgraduate conferences, a Faulkner conference in Nottingham, and a conference in Birmingham on the 1950s. Liverpool Community College also hosted an A level students conference in October 1997. In May there was for the first time an official BAAS panel at the American Literature Association conference in Baltimore and plans are proceeding for a joint ALA/BAAS conference – put off from 1998 to avoid a clash with the Martin Luther King Conference, which is May 8-10 in Newcastle with Harry Belafonte being awarded an honorary degree in the midst of it. Other conferences in the immediate future cover Urban Space in Nottingham, May 16th, Library resources in American Studies, London 18th June, New Orleans in Europe , Warwick 4-5 July, and Conspiracy culture in Winchester 17-19 July.

Individual congratulations go to the winners of various awards. The BAAS Essay prize was won by Paul Grainge, Nottingham. The Arthur Miller prize was shared by Richard Godden (Keele) and Priscilla Roberts (Hong Kong). The Short Term Awards competition attracted applicants this year, of very high quality indeed. The winners were: Nahfiza Ahmed, Leicester (John Lees Award) Sam Ann Maddra, Glasgow (Marcus Cunliffe Award) Neil Alsopp, Sheffield Janet Greenlees, York Darren Mulloy, UEA Karen Wilkinson, Manchester Metropolitan.

The scheme depends entirely on voluntary donations and BAAS is very grateful to those of you who contribute. We don’t name names here, but we are particularly grateful to one member who has effectively funded an award per year for the last five and a half years, and to a especially generous donation from another individual.

Congratulations also go to David Adams, awarded the OBE in 1997 for services to North American studies – the first citation of this kind, I believe; Janet Beer, now Chair of English at Manchester Metropolitan; Nick Cull, Chair of American Studies at University of Leicester, Chris Clark, Chair of American History at Warwick, Clive Bush, Chair at King’s College, London, Brian Ward, Reader in American History at Newcastle. Among BAAS members gaining awards we note David Seed (Leverhulme), Paul Giles (Humanities Research fellowship at Dartmouth), Douglas Tallack (Humanities Research board), Dave Murray (Newberry Library Fellowship), Richard King (Woodrow Wilson fellow, Washington).

It only remains to thank all the members of the BAAS Executive for their assistance – and especially those members who retired from office this year : Ben Andrews, Mick Gidley, Mike Sewall, Douglas Tallack, Andy Watts. Special thanks are also due to both the officers. Janet Beer took control of the treasury in a matter of days and comprehensively reorganised it and its database despite a smashed shoulder and a new job. And Phil Davies has been an absolutely invaluable Secretary. Being Chair of BAAS has been extremely enjoyable for me, and I take this opportunity to wish him as rewarding an experience as mine has been.

Judie Newman, University of Newcastle Upon Tyne

Norwich Conference – Panel Reports

Plenary Lecture

Chair: Judie Newman University of Newcastle Upon Tyne
Hugh Brogan (University of Essex) ‘Denis Brogan and His America’

The curse of the BAAS Opening Plenary Lecture was both fulfilled and averted at the University of East Anglia. Fulfilled, in that Nelson Polsby, who was originally to give the opening address was unfortunately too ill to attend. (We wish him the very best of speedy recoveries.) Averted, in that Hugh Brogan stepped into the breach at short notice and delivered a lecture which was erudite, witty, and meaty to boot. Brogan’s topic was Brogan – his father , Denis – and his aim was to demonstrate that Brogan’s America was just as interesting a topic as those of Tocqueville’s America or Bryce’s America would be. En route to fulfilling this aim Hugh also demonstrated that his own America would be just as fascinating a topic for analysis : this one could run and run.

Rather than giving a complete account of all his father’s work (impossible, given the volume) Hugh concentrated on his best-known writings, preceded by a brief biographical sketch which argued, suggestively to this reviewer, that the sense of outsiderhood as a Roman Catholic, a Scot and a working class descendant of Irish immigrants, was an important factor in the enthusiasm Brogan pere showed for America. The American Political System was his first important work, and a considerable succes d’estime, ultimately responsible for getting him a major academic Chair (thus enabling him to spend one term in three in America) . The outbreak of war in 1939 made all experts on America of public importance, and he then became a radio star. Brogan’s career was penetrated by a sense of mission, even at times of boosterism, his America bathed in something of a rosy glow. Yet while Coolidge’s America was Brogan’s too, the figure on whom he wrote most conspicuously was Franklin Roosevelt. Brogan was sharply critical as well as properly celebratory. Hugh examined the comparatively static picture of America to be found in the first major works (in which race was almost entirely absent from the picture, women did not fare much better, but class was of major importance) followed by Brogan’s view of the changes of his time, as his America (fundamentally Republican, Middle Western and small town) faced profound transformations. Brogan’s work was informed by a broad interdisciplinarianism in which everything – films, music, literature – was grist for his mill. As Hugh (in his own practice as much as in the description of his father’s career) amply demonstrated, he remains a powerful argument for the wide and bold approach to American Studies.

Revolutionary & Pre-Revolutionary America

Chair: Simon Newman, University of Glasgow Simon Middleton (UEA) ‘The Myth of the Artisan: Reconsidering the Transformation of Urban Politics in Colonial New York’
Colin Nicolson (Stirling) ‘The ‘Infamas Govener:’ Francis Bernard and the Origins of the Revolution in Massachusetts’
Michael McDonnell (University of Wales, Swansea) ‘The Virginia Minutemen and Their World: The Politics of Popular Mobilization in Revolutionary Virginia’

Simon Middleton explored the political economy of bread production and bread riots in seventeenth century New Amsterdam, illustrating how bakers began to improve their bargaining position by assuming local governmental offices. Few other artisans were so successful, and he challenged historians to question the assumed coherence of the artisan class as a social, economic and political unit. Colin Nicolson dealt with Governor Francis Bernard’s role in the coming of the Revolution in Massachusetts, paying particular attention to the largely unexplored relationship between Bernard and the Loyalist ‘friends of government.’ Bernard failed, Nicolson argued, because during the Stamp Act crisis he made the tactical blunder of reducing the controversy to basic principles, arguing that violent resistance and destruction of property entailed disloyalty. The few Loyalists who were willing to back Bernard were marginalised, and he succeeded only in destroying consensual politics in Massachusetts. Michael McDonnell asked why revolutionary Virginians found it so hard to create the wartime militias that were so easily established in New England: Virginia’s independent companies, he argued, had been relatively democratic entities, but the elite-organised and dominated militia units that followed showed the Virginia elite to be wary of a revolutionary erosion of deference, while yeoman farmers were politicised and the pre-war Patriot consensus disintegrated. A lively debate followed, and continued over drinks and meals throughout the conference.

American Male Identities

Chair: Richard Godden, Keele
Graham Thompson (Nottingham Trent) ‘”Privacy and Society Conjoined”: The Rhetoric of the Office in Melville’s Bartleby’
Carolyn Masel (Manchester) ‘Walt Whitman’s Fan Group, the “Eagle Street College”‘
Gert Buelens (Ghent) ‘The Queering of Henry James’
Kevin White ‘The New Man and Early Twentieth-Century Emotional Culture’

Graham Thompson’s paper, ‘”Privacy and Society Conjoined”: The Rhetoric of the Office in Melville’s ‘Bartleby, the Scrivener”, argued that the relationship between the lawyer-narrator and Bartleby is one of male-male desire. Both the office, which following Foucault can be considered a surveilling machine, and key elements of the narrative are constructed from those pairings that Eve Sedgwick has demonstrated as crucial for the epistemological organizing of male sexuality since at least the second half of the nineteenth century (public/private, surveillance/self-surveillance, disclosure/secrecy). Using Lee Edelman’s theory of homographesis, the paper argued that the surveillance of the office is actually a process which inscribes the bodies of men with sexual identity. However, by desiring a Bartleby who is inscribed in such close relation to a passive, feminized masculinity the lawyer-narrator actually deconstructs the logic of his own apparently normal masculinity. The result is that he has to disavow and rid himself of Bartleby, and so of aspects of himself. Thompson argued that such processes of reading, inscription, and deconstruction were figured through the lawyer-narrator’s question at the end of the story: ‘Dead letters! Does it not sound like dead men?’

Carolyn Masel’s ‘The Reception of Walt Whitman: Some Reflections on Late Nineteenth-Century Masculinity’, contributed to the ongoing debate about Walt Whitman’s sexuality. Her paper was based on Horace L. Taubel’s letters to James W. Wallace, ‘master’ of the ‘Eagle Street College’ in Bolton, Lancs. The ‘College’ was in fact a long-running group whose central focus was Whitman’s poetry; its extensive archive is now held in the Bolton Public Library, with a smaller collection in the John Rylands University of Manchester. Masel contrasted the contradictory messages about Whitman’s alleged homosexuality sent by one of Whitman’s literary executors, R. M. Bucks (through his apparently sympathetic edition of Whitman’s letters to his friend Peter Doyle), with the emphatic repudiation of Walt’s homosexuality by Traubel, another executor – a view endorsed in even more extreme language by Traubel’s colleague, Brinton. The crucial role played by J. A. Symonds in the definition of Whitman’s sexuality by these men (as well as by Whitman himself) was also considered, as was the figure of Edward Carpenter.

Gert Buelens’s ‘The Queering of Henry James’ , addressed a Jamesian erotics of power, noting that for James (and most particularly in The Portrait of a Lady) gender might best be located culturally along a scale detailing degrees of mastery or submission. The resultant erotics would stress role-play around such issues as the ‘enjoyment’ of power and the ‘taking’ of property – both, by the measure of that most American character, Caspar Goodwood, male activities. Buelens then offered an alternative map of desire in Portrait , whereby Isabel Archer is marked ‘male’ by her inheritance; Gilbert Osmond, (the esthete) falls for her strength, and although masculinized by marriage, is effectively refeminized by his desire to ‘have’ Lord Warburton for Pansy. Other transformations rendered Henriette Stackpole male, by dint of her careerism, and cast Madame Merle as a focus of Isabel’s desire.

Kevin White’s ‘The New Man and Early Twentieth Century Emotional Culture’ challenged Cas Wouters and Francesca Cancian’s paradigm for the history of sexual emotions in the twentieth century – that the century saw a shift from repression to liberation, based on an ‘informalisation of emotional control’ and consequent ‘greater intimacy.’ Looking at the male experience (following Anthony Giddens), he argued that the shift away from a purely procreative sexuality in the twentieth century caused a ‘plastic sexuality’ that actually led to an ’emotional abyss… between the sexes’. Victorian Americans, with their strict roles over erotic visibility, kept sex unseen and encouraged ‘romantic love’ with its high erotic and emotional intensity. Twentieth century ‘dating’ and ‘companionate marriage’, by openly sexualising and democratising courtship and marriage, stimulated a more worldly-wise, mature and adult ‘new love’. Rational and sensible, the ‘new love’ ridiculed Victorian emotional passions, but lacked Victorian intensity. He concluded, therefore, that the twentieth century resulted in a dampening of sexual passion, as its ‘liberation’ imposed new disciplines on men, and perhaps on women too.

Literary Tourism and Taste

Chair: Douglas Tallack (Nottingham)
G.J. Reynolds (Kent) ‘Washington Irving, Literary Tourism and National Identity’
Elisa Tamarkin (Stanford) ‘Deferring Independence: Anglophilia and the Origins of American High Culture’
James Massender (Kent) ”Our vulgar sense of wonder’: Science and Masculinity in Steinbeck’s The Log from the Sea of Cortez.’

I was drafted in at short notice to chair this session and it proved to be a thoroughly stimulating experience. The three papers were of a very high standard and were professionally delivered to an appreciative audience.

In ‘Washington Irving, Literary Tourism and National Identity’, Guy Reynolds addressed the central issues of cultural transmission and literary tourism by concentrating upon Irving’s largely forgotten books about Spain and arguing for their significance as part of a genealogy wherein American artists encounter and represent the Iberian peninsular. Relations between literary and visual representations received some attention. Irving’s work, Reynolds argued, anticipates twentieth-century texts such as Richard Wright’s Pagan Spain, and sketches out an ‘American’ Spain which is pre-modern, surreal and folkloric.

Elisa Tamarkin examined how critical insistence on literary nationalism and cultural independence has ignored a competing phenomenon of American anglophilia in the ante-bellum years, a phenomenon which cut across the boundaries of region and class and which meant that a fascination with the Prince of Wales and ‘British Intelligence’ vied in the national imagination with the Revolution itself. She went on to describe how just prior to the Civil War, Anglophilia had become not only necessary to America’s cultural ideology, but its endorsement of ‘loyalism’ and ‘deference’ as virtues would be used to serve a new nationalist rhetoric based on guarding the status quo.

To conclude the session, James Massender gave a paper entitled ”Our vulgar sense of wonder’: Science and Masculinity in Steinbeck’s The Log from the Sea of Cortez.’ As part of a broader investigation into the conjunction between science, tourism and gender in American literature and culture, the paper offered a reading of Log which considered its complex politics – suggesting that while the text presents a critique of an institutionalized Western science, and accentuates the relation of that science to the consolidation of capitalist state power, its gender politics are problematic. The difficulty crystallizes around the text’s preoccupation with its own vulgarity: the male figure of the ‘true biologist’ allows for both a critical treatment of issues of status and class, at the same time as that same figure motivates a conservative gender politics that insists upon virility as ‘natural’ and negates any critique of masculinity as ‘genteel’ reaction rather tan political engagement.

The question session covered such matters as other candidates for Guy Reynold’s genealogy and James Massender’s conjunction of issues; the significance of textual tourism; and – in response to Elisa Tamarkin’s paper- distinctions between Anglophilia as it existed in the North and in the South.

Rhythm and Blues

Chair: George McKay (Central Lancashire)
Mark Anton Goble (Stanford) ‘Black Music and the Insatiable White Ear: James Weldon Johnston and the Technologies of Identity.’ Maurice Bottomly (Manchester Metropolitan) ‘In the Spirit: New Classic Soul and Contemporary African-American Culture.’
Barbara Wylie (University College, London) ‘Popular Music in Nabokov’s Lolita or Frankie and Johnny: a new Key to Lolita.’

Three enjoyable papers exploring issues of popular music and its place in wider American (and transatlantic) culture were presented. On his first visit to a BAAS conference, Mark Anton Goble from Stanford University considered the significance of popular music in a literary text. Goble critically unpacked aspects of voice, technological innovation such as the phonograph, and racial identity in James Weldon Johnson’s Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man. Goble concluded with remarks on a later literary manifestation of the cluster of issues around music, technology and African-American identity, that of Ralph Ellison.

Maurice Bottomly from Manchester Metropolitan University looked at the sub-genre of contemporary black pop music known as New Classic Soul. Offering close readings of key features, Bottomly discussed ways in which this form of contemporary soul employs African-American traditions from jazz, doo-wop, and Motown. He implicitly contrasted this utopian construction in New classic Soul with some more negative forms of, for instance, rap.

Barbara Wylie from University College London returned to the place of popular music as presented and employed in American writing. Her paper traced ways in which the significance of popular music is seen by Nabokov in Lolita, particularly through the eyes or ears of Lolita herself, and took issue with previous critics’ limitations in their readings of this aspect of the text. Perhaps despite Nabokov’s declared inability to hear music, Wylie offered a comparative analysis of revenge scenarios in the novel and in a classic American pop song, ‘Frankie and Johnnie’. Her paper also raised the conflict of identity between Humbert’s European high culture and Lolita’s American low culture in the context of popular music.

1968/1998 I

Chair: Hugh Brogan, University of Essex
Phil Davies (DeMontfort University) ‘Crowded Out: The Mediation of the Crowd in American Political Conventions’
Kevin Yuill (Nottingham University) ‘The Nixon Administration and the Origins of Affirmative Action’
John Dumbrell (Keele University) ‘Varieties of Post-Cold War American Isolationism’

The first of three speakers was Phil Davies (DeMontfort), whose theme, or rather whose suggestion was that over the centuries since the American Revolution the American people have gradually been edged out of significant direct participation in politics, leaving the field to the professionals. In a swift survey of American history he reminded us of the role of the crowd in the American Revolution, of Shay’s Rebellion, of the fact that some women voted in post-revolutionary New Jersey, of Andrew Jackson’s inauguration and the day of ‘King Mob’, and of the emergence of the party conventions, which were marked by ‘crowd involvement and party management.’ But in the twentieth century the power to choose the presidential candidates has moved away from the conventions; 1952 was the last year in which they actually decided the nominations (unless we remember the contest for the Democratic vice-presidential nomination in 1956 between Estes Kefauver and John F. Kennedy). In the 1960s there could still be drama at the conventions: Dr. Davies instances the struggle over the Mississippi Freedom Party in 1964 and the war on the streets at Chicago in 1968. But the reforms in the Democratic party which followed 1968 shifted still more power away from the convention to the voters in the primaries. Debates of great importance could still occur, but by 1996 even these seemed too dangerous to the party bosses, and both conventions were ‘thoroughly mediated.’ Television watchers therefore switched off in droves, which encouraged the managers to ignore them. What were once, in Alistair Cooke’s phrase, chess games disguised as circuses, have become, by what may be a normal evolution, mere unconvincing showcases. And there are now no national forums for the parties.

Kevin Yuill (Nottingham) spoke on ‘The Nixon Administration and Affirmative Action,’ using the Philadelphia Plan of those years as a useful illustration of his themes, which were twofold. First, he argued that ‘affirmative action’ had been a specific strategy, accepted across the board, ever since the New Deal, as the perception of institutionalised racism became general. Society and the economy were seen as a sort of zero sum game, and it was agreed that the federal government had to intervene to see that the disadvantaged (in 1968, ‘women, minorities and young people’) got their due slice of the cake. Nixon’s Philadelphia Plan exemplified this: it was the first time that the government had given anti-discriminatory instructions direct to contractors. But the Philadelphia Plan failed, and affirmative action led inexorably to the creation of quota systems, which were soon denounced as discriminatory. Then came 1973 and affirmative action became still more controversial. In hard times no-one will readily relinquish any part of their opportunities.

John Dumbrell (Keele) spoke on ‘Varieties of Post-Cold War American Isolationism.’ Taking as his axiom the view that some of the positions called isolationist should not automatically be consigned to darkness, he surveyed in masterly fashion the complex debates about America’s position in the world which have taken place since the defeat in Vietnam and the end of the Cold War, and are still continuing. Part of his undertaking was taxonomic: he listed the great variety of attitudes that may be called isolationist: liberal isolationism, conservative isolationism, idealist isolationism, ‘peace dividend isolationism’, and so on. He also related isolationism to other tendencies, such as unilateralism and multilateralism, and the new, Right-wing populism of leaders such as Pat Buchanan and Jesse Helms with his contempt for ‘deadbeat diplomats’. The picture he painted was not altogether reassuring, though he concluded that so far isolationism has not much affected US policy: President Clinton is a globalist. But the defeat of ‘fast-track’ shows that the problem is still with us. After a useful discussion the session closed with the moderator’s warm thanks to these three speakers for putting together such a valuable survey of some current problems of American democracy.

Science Fact and Fiction

Chair: David Seed (Liverpool University)
Farah Mendlesohn (Ripon & St. John, York) ‘The Politics of the Early Science Fiction Magazines, 1926-1940’
Richard Hinchcliffe (Central Lancs) ‘Pilgrims Progress and the Protestant Work Ethic in Kurt Vonnegut’s Slaughterhouse 5’
Louis J. Kern (Hofstra University, NY) ‘Jeux d’esprit: Fantastic Voyages, and the Imaginary Construction of Popular Phenomena: Moon and Ballon Hoaxes of the 1830s and 1840s’

Farah Mendlesohn (Ripon & St. John, York) opened this session with a presentation from a cross-sectional survey-in-progress of the stories in science fiction magazines from the 1920s through to c. 1950. She drew comparisons with late 19th century missionary boys’ adventures which influenced the general pattern of these stories, minus the religious dimension. Three standard plots were identified: man invents new scientific device; the exploration of a new world; and the encounter between humans and aliens. War features repeatedly and America is usually presented as the innocent target of aggression. In general these stories are unconcerned about belligerence and genocide, until the 1940s when writers like Asimov and Bradbury develop pacifist positions.

Richard Hinchcliff engaged with a related issue. His comparison produced similarities (the recurrence of psychomachy, for instance) and partly it highlighted differences. The patch-work texture of Slaughterhouse-5 contests the telos of Protestant narratives and, during an examination of the title-pages for both works, it was argued that the author is drawn into the text. Billy Pilgrim’s journey shadowed the progression in conversion-narratives towards the salvationary city but ultimately Vonnegut inverts Bunyan, presenting Dresden as a lunar wasteland.

The Moon gave Louis J. J. Kern a handle for his examination of the beginnings of popular journalism in early 19th-century America. Fantastic moon voyages entered U.S. culture in the 1820s, usually as satires. Poe exploited the current balloon fad in his ‘Hans Pfaall’ and nine weeks later Richard Adams Locke, editor of the New York Sun, published an article about Moon discoveries. Poe saw the latter as plagiarism from his own idea, but the factor of envy may have played a part here. Locke was a successful journalist impressing Poe with the breadth of circulation. This period marked a turning-point in Poe’s career towards hoaxing and the questions which followed picked up on this ambivalence in Poe.

1968/1998 II

Chair: Philip Davies, DeMontfort University
Scott L. Bills (Stephen F. Austin State University, Texas) ‘Boundaries of Imperial Discourse: Vietnam, Kent State, and Paramilitary Visions’
Kendrick Oliver (Southampton University) ‘”Post-Industrial Society” and the Psychology of the American Far Right, 1950-1974’
Martin Durham (Wolverhampton University) ‘Constructing an Alternative History: The Christian Far Right, The Militias, and Conspiracy Theory in late Twentieth Century America’

These three papers examined memory, theory and conspiracy as roots and foundations of the contemporary American far right. According to Scott Bills (Vice-President of the Peace History Society), the shootings at Kent State provided a location (another grassy knoll) and a searing image of death and betrayal around which to focus the national memory of Vietnam and its domestic ramifications. The event defined for some the challenge to US policy in Vietnam, the roots of that challenge, and the acceptable levels of response. When domestic tension was perceived as rooted in third world guerrillas supported on the streets and campuses of America by a revolutionary rabble, then a paramilitary response was appropriate. The far right, observing the phenomenon, and the lack of retribution, encompasses the moment and builds on it a critique of liberalism as the threat to society, with the white male as the oppressed soul at the core.

Social tension also featured in the analysis presented by Kendrick Oliver (author of Kennedy, Macmillan and the Nuclear Test-Ban Debate, 1961-1963, Macmillan) Daniel Bell could not accept the Marxist model of class and ideological cleavage as a driving force in American society, but saw influence and prestige reallocated towards experts and technocrats in a post-industrial world. The new elites became the targets of the right, but this was a mis-identification of the cause of the problems that might be equally founded on lack of wealth creation, street crime and disorder, and so forth. Explained by Adorno as a product of authoritarian personalities, and by Bell as a response to social strain, it has to be remembered that in some regions and localities far right thought and opinions are more an element of social acceptance than of social strain.

Contemporary views of the right often link the Christian conservative movement and the Militias. Martin Durham (author of Women and Fascism, Routledge) pointed out the differences: a long-established Christian conservative movement has worked within the system, lobbying, campaigning, and gingering up the Republican party in particular; the Militias are a more recent phenomenon, much smaller in numbers, and with a deep suspicion of authority that culminates in arming against the potential incursions of their own government. Followers of both Christian and Militia right thought are influence by conspiracy theory, and occasionally these emerge in the more mainstream political activities. Pat Robertson’s 1988 presidential campaign warned of ‘the dominion of Lucifer’. By the time that Pat Buchanan was talking of a ‘cultural war in America’ and George Bush of ‘A New World Order’ the political lexicon had been so hijacked that rank and file conservatives in the Republican party were deeply suspicious of the legitimacy of the policy aims of their leaders. These three well-fitted papers stimulated a further hour of questioning and discussion before the chair had to call a halt in order to allow the conference programme to proceed.

Writing the Body

Chair: Margaret Roberts (Exeter)
James Annesley (Brunel) ‘Sex and the Spectacle: Exhibitionism in Some Recent American Fiction.’ Susan Rogers (Hull) ‘Representations of the Body in Gloria Naylor’s Mama Day.’
Stephen Shapiro (Saarland) ‘Social Historians Study the Vagaries of Women’s Fashions: Gramsci, Drag, and the Wars of (Subject) Position.’

James Annesley’s paper noted the strong exhibitionist streak that can be traced in late twentieth century culture. He cited publications like Madonna’s Sex, the performance art of Annie Sprinkle and the films of Hall Hartley, Atom Egoyan and Larry Clarke as examples of a contemporary preoccupation with sex. The paper considered the ways in which explicit elements are incorporated into a range of contemporary narratives, and developed into a commentary on the general significance of this sexual turn. Using Susanna Moore’s novel In The Cut, James outlined the ways in which this and other narratives represent explicit sexuality in objectified terms. He argued that this objectification, both physical and abstract, provides a way of connecting these representations with the mechanisms of commodification. This argument implies that the sexual turn in these texts can be linked to the consumer frenzy of late twentieth century capitalism. The explicit images in the texts were interpreted in terms of a commodified sexual spectacle allowing James’s conclusions to form part of a more general perspective on exhibitionism in American culture.

Susan Roger’s central argument was that one of the main concerns of Naylor’s novel Mama Day, is the need of her mixed race heroine Cocoa, to come to terms with the miscegenation of her ancestors. Cocoa’s emotional journey towards recognition of her cultural identity, is played out to a large degree in relation to her physical self. The paper examined the way that Naylor’s work at once challenges notions of identity grounded in the body, and also explored the impact prescriptive ideas about the body have on the individual who inhabits that body. The argument moved on to suggest that Naylor’s novel undercuts the idea of physicality as a stable site of identity and goes on to unsettle ideas about fixed oppositions within slavery. Exploring issues around Cocoa’s physicality and mixed race identity highlighted the way the text reinterprets ideas about the slaveholding past.

Stephen Shapiro’s argument starts from the premise that American Cultural Studies has reached an impasse in its basic terminology. He stated that Gender and Sexuality studies, the essentialism/social construction debate seems unable to work through this problem. Further Cultural Materialism is also suffering grid lock in the debates about Neutral vs. Negative ideology. Taking Gramsci’s ‘wars of subject position (1980s-1990s,) and its re-situation through Stuart Hall’s mediation of ‘war of movement’ and ‘war of position’, Stephen argues that Hall’s emphasis on ‘war of position’ creates its own set of self-defeating analyses. These blind American Studies to the ways in which its objects themselves exist within and reconfigure culture. Using the Jennie Livingston movie Paris is Burning, the paper goes on to illustrate how a ‘war of movement’ can work when a war of position is untenable. By arguing that movement and position act intemporal responses, not static positions or immanent language differences, Stephen calls for American Studies to metacritically examine the historical specificity of its terminology in order to gain a more satisfying sense of the relations between culture and society. Questions were lively and constructive.

American Studies or Studies of America: The Choice is Yours

Chair: Jay Kleinberg
Lecture: Peter McLeay (University of Wolverhampton)

Peter McLeay addressed the topic of ‘American Studies or Studies of America: The Choice is Yours’ in a lively and provocative session which addressed the issue of methodology in American Studies and its relative absence from BAAS conferences. The core of American Studies in Britain is in literature, popular culture, history, and politics, but the speaker urged its expansion to include science and technology in order to broaden our understanding of the United States. He particularly focused on the need for a spatial dimension to the study of the US since we are all bound together by our interest in the place.

Dr McLeay made some useful suggestions about ways forward for the interdisciplinary study of the American experience, suggesting that Americanists focus on how systems work and the consequences of their working. He pointed out that our students learn various types of reasoning: through deduction, by analogy, and by synthesising ideas and artifacts through contextual analysis. He then illustrated how he uses these techniques in case studies, including one based on The Grapes of Wrath, the movie, in which an interdisciplinary and holistic approach is taken to the Great Depression. Dr. McLeay concluded by urging Americanists to move forward and to experience the challenging and demanding fun which interdisciplinarity can bring.

A Cosmic Watergate: The Roswell Incident and the Public Imagination

Chair: Vivien Miller (Exeter)
Lecture: Alasdair Spark (Winchester)

Alasdair Spark’s informative and entertaining pre-dinner exploration of the origins of various popular discourses surrounding the Roswell Incident of 1947 was extremely well received by a mixed audience of historians, cultural studies and literary specialists. Spark is interested in the cultural invention of conspiracy views and their constructions in popular culture. Roswell is of particular interest as in July 1947 it was only one of many sightings of flying saucers and other alien craft, and was a largely forgotten incident until thirty years later when it resurfaced as a subject of controversy and debate at the centre of a perceived military/government cover-up. There is no longer a coherent ‘Roswell Incident’ but several Roswells as every aspect of the event is disputed and there is little consensus between chroniclers, witnesses and conspiracists except over the question of ‘if’. Spark traced the growth of UFO popular culture from the early 1950s through the present day, noting that ‘The Truth is Out There’ has entered popular knowledge and discourse. The lines between fact and fiction have become increasingly blurred in any discussion of aliens, for example.

Most intriguing was Spark’s exploration of the impact of the Freedom of Information Act (1974) on the notion of conspiracy and evidence of cover-ups. Declassification gave ufologists unprecedented access to military archives in which they located further evidence of government cover-up and conspiracy in blacked out records. Such revelations had the effect of forcing the US military to admit to the existence of covert projects; this in turn fuelled notions of conspiracy and government/military intrigue. Such a magnitude of ‘evidence’ and commentaries about Roswell has now been amassed that the possibility of nothing having happened is too devastating to contemplate. The only disappointment of Spark’s discourse was the absence of time in which to show pertinent video clips.

Late Nineteenth-Century Literary Encounters

Chair: Janet Beer, Manchester Metropolitan University
John Cooley (Western Michigan) ‘Mark Twain’s Same-Sex Shotgun Marriages’
Peter Rawlings (Kyushu University, Japan) ‘A Name’s of No Significance: Henry James and American Configurations of Shakespeare’
Frank Lennon (Liverpool, Hope) ‘W. T. Stead’s The Americanisation of the World (1902) Revisited’

In the session Late 19th Century Literary Encounters, chaired by Janet Beer, speakers looked at Mark Twain’s Same-Sex Shotgun Marriages, W.T. Stead’s The Americanisation of the World and Henry James and American Configurations of Shakespeare. John Cooley, from Western Michigan University, examined Twain’s confirmation of the sexual stereotypes of his era alongside his undercutting of them in his later fiction, particularly in the short stories ‘How Nancy Jackson Married Kate Wilson,’ (1901-3) and ‘Wapping Alice.’ (1882-1907).

He noted that the first story explores involuntary transvestism which concludes with the ‘shotgun marriage’ of Nancy (successfully disguised as a young man named Robert Finlay) and Kate Wilson, who faces the dishonor of having a child out of wedlock and that ‘Wapping Alice’ also violates social conventions by deliberately crossing and thus confusing gender categories and boundaries. Twain was shown to establish a specifically homosexual sub-text which explores a subject matter both hidden and forbidden in his era: homosexual friendship, sexuality (including sodomy) and marriage. Cooley cited evidence which suggests that Twain was responding to the 1895 sodomy trials of Oscar Wilde and their notoriety on both sides of the Atlantic.

Frank Lennon from Liverpool Hope examined W.T.Stead’s The Americanisation of the World which was written at the dawn of the ‘American century.’ The book was put into the broad context of late nineteenth-century Anglo-American thought with particular reference being made to A.E.Freeman, James Bryce, and Andrew Carnegie. Stead wrote the book in order to persuade his British fellow-citizens that a close alliance, even amounting to federation, with the United States was the only way by which Britain could continue to be a major force in the events of the new century. He had reached this conclusion after wide-ranging analysis of the extent of growing American influence in the British Empire and what Stead called ‘The Rest of the World’, and of the methods by which this Americanisation had taken place and was continuing to do so. The upshot was a remarkable, if flawed, survey which could stand as a useful starting point for an understanding of the trends of the twentieth century.

The third speaker, Peter Rawlings from Kyushu University, argued that American culture had achieved some of its distinctiveness and power by effectively taking over Shakespeare from the Old World. By the end of the nineteenth century, the scale of this operation had made it possible to locate American Shakespeare in the burgeoning mass culture industry. Henry James, for ever caught between the imperative to express and the even greater imperative to conceal, and further troubled by the possibility of an endlessly elusive popularity he nevertheless disavowed, explores many of these issues in his short story ‘The Birthplace’, a story whose ultimate plea is for silence.

The Literatures of Colonial America

Chair: Susan Castillo (Glasgow)
Kathryn Napier (Glasgow) ‘Pocahontas: The Historical Figure’
Elsa Simoes (Fernando Pessoa University, Oporto) ‘Anne Bradstreet and Mary Rowlandson: An Escape from Puritan Captivity’
James Egan (Brown) ‘”A Brat as Black as Ink!”: English Identity and Colonial Writing’

In a lively and well-attended session, Kathryn Napier (Glasgow), Elsa Simoes (Fernando Pessoa) and James Egan (Brown) presented papers on diverse aspects of American colonial tests.

In her paper ‘Pocahontas: The Historical Figure’, Kathryn Napier analyzed the ways in which the story of Poconhatas has been received in America, emphasizing the fact that she was a woman of non-European origin, is mediated by texts which are themselves a product of patriarchal, British imperialist discourse.

Elsa Simoes, in ‘Anne Bradstreet and Mary Towlandson: An Escape from Puritan Captivity’, discussed the strategies used by Bradstreet and Towlandson in publishing and in claiming legitimacy for their texts, with special focus on the subversive nature of mourning.

Finally, James Egan in a paper entitled ”A Brat as Black as Ink’: English Identity and Colonial Southern Writing’, examined how writers from what is now known as the colonial South re-imagined English collectivity in the light of colonization. In order to explore this issue, he focused on George Alsop’s A Character of the Province of Maryland (1666). Egan argued that in demonstrating what Maryland can, as he puts it, ‘bring into England’, Alsop suggests that a fundamentally different ground for English identity is needed if the monarchy – and, along with it, what he associates with everything that is ‘truly English’ – is to survive. English identity, Alsop contends, depends on English bodies mixing with colonial soil. Alsop imagines England a community that stretches across the Atlantic to eat from what he calls ‘the dish of discourse’ Marylanders have to offer. The papers were followed by a stimulating discussion session.

Foreign Policy Issues

Chair: Hugh Wilford (Middlesex University) Priscilla Roberts (Hong Kong) ‘Hamilton Fish Armstrong: Paradigm of the American Foreign Policy Establishment’
Dianne Kirby (York) ‘The Cold War “Balance of Ideologies”‘
Nathan Abrams (Birmingham) ‘”Like a Stallion”: Arthur Miller as Sexually Orthodox Cold War Warrior’

The three papers presented in this session all dealt with a subject of increasing interest to historians of American foreign relations, namely the part played by non-official individuals and networks in the formulation and conduct of US foreign policy. Hamilton Armstrong Fish, for example, the subject of an entertaining presentation by Priscilla Roberts, was never a government officer but nonetheless made a number of vital contributions to American foreign policy-making in his role as long-serving editor of Foreign Affairs and link-man between the worlds of Washington, New York high finance and the big foundations. A supporter of the League of Nations, opponent of appeasement and, finally, critic of American policy in Vietnam, Fish mixed large quantities of Wilsonian idealism with dashes of Theodore Roosevelt-style real politik. However, it was the ease with which he glided between the public and private spheres of US diplomacy that made him, Priscilla Roberts argued, a ‘paradigm of the American foreign policy establishment.’

Next, Dianne Kirby carried on her important work on Christianity and the Christian church in the Cold War by examining the religious imagery employed in the foreign policy pronouncements of Harry Truman and Ernest Bevin in the late 1940s. The use of such imagery, she argued, was no mere rhetorical flourish, but reflected a deliberate, conscious attempt to deploy Christianity in the ideological and strategic construction of an Anglo-American alliance against Soviet Communism. The western cause in the Cold War was, both literally and figuratively, a ‘crusade’.

Finally, Nathan Abrams presented a typically fascinating account of Arthur Miller’s role in the ‘Cultural Cold War’. Usually seen as lying outside the anti-Communist consensus of the 1950s, by virtue of his defiance of HUAC and the anti-McCarthy allegory of ‘The Crucible’, Miller’s work was in fact permeated by Cold War discourses about gender and sexuality. The presence of such elements in his plays helps explain why it was that, at the same time they were denounced at home as ‘un-American’, they were being staged overseas under the auspices of the State Department. All in all, then, a very stimulating session – as was demonstrated by the liveliness of the discussion period – showcasing some of the best current scholarship on non-official players in US foreign policy.

Henry Adams

Chair: Duco van Oostrum (Sheffield)
J.C. Levenson (Virginia) ‘The Apprentice Diplomat Transformed: England in The Education of Henry Adams’
Kurt Mayer (Vienna) ‘”My Own Anglicism Is Somewhat Wilted”‘: Henry Adams’s Education in England, 1861Ð1868

The Henry Adams panel, organised by the Henry Adams Society, was the only single-author panel of the 1998 BAAS-conference. Even though such singular focus might appear to limit the range of discussion, this turned out to be far from truth. The speakers had been invited to assess Henry Adams’s English education, a topic particularly suitable to a Henry Adams panel held under rubric of BAAS. After all, Adams proclaims rather loudly in chapter 12 of The Education of Henry Adams: ‘Knowledge of human nature is the beginning and end of political education, but several years of arduous study in the neighborhood of Westminster led Henry Adams to think that knowledge of English human nature had little or no value outside of England.’ Adams describes his experience with English education succinctly as: ‘For him alone the less English education he got, the better!’ He depicts the English mind as ‘one-sided, eccentric, systematically unsystematic, and logically illogical.’

The first speaker, Professor J.C. Levenson, editor of The Letters of Henry Adams and author of The Mind and Art of Henry Adams (1957), presented a paper on the ‘English’ chapters in The Education and reaffirmed his position as the foremost scholar of Henry Adams in the contemporary academic world. In the context of current debates about interpretative masterplots and open-ended signification, Levenson argued that The Education has much to offer that is relevant to that debate. As Levenson argues: ‘The incorrigibly pluralistic world that Adams depicts, a world where contingencies co-exist with necessities and absolutes regularly turn out to be relative, is at the center of current discussion, but is not new.’ During his year as Private Secretary to his father, Charles Adams, Minister to Great Britain, Henry Adams followed closely in the footsteps of his father. Levenson’s suggestion that the narrative voice in the English chapters of The Education appears to blend with the character Henry Adams rather than present him with ironic contempt is wonderfully suggestive. Adams quests for grand narratives yet his commitment to scholarly precision allows him to criticise his own grand narratives from within. That commitment to detail in combination with an ethical quest is what makes Adams’s text a suggestive model for contemporary scholarship. Henry Adams is not just, as John Carlos Rowe has put it, a Bricoleur, but he is more a Bricoleur malgre lui. As Levenson concluded: ‘Adams has acted on the belief that there are continuities as well as particularities, that the world may be ‘partially unified,’ a very different matter from not hanging together at all.’

The second speaker, Dr Kurt Mayer from the University of Vienna and a respected scholar on Henry Adams’s Education in Germany, complicated Henry Adams’s own depiction of his English education in The Education by bringing to life to us the young Henry Adams (‘a Brahmin brat with a personal income of $2,500 a year, room and board free’), completely isolated in his father’s shadow and suffering from culture shock. In an entertaining fashion, Mayer demonstrated how even the servants utterly intimidated the young Henry Adams, by obliterating his Presidential New England background into insignificance. In a piece he anonymously wrote for the New York Times in 1861, Adams apparently empathises so much with the death of Prince Albert that he becomes caught up in the mis-recognition of continental aristocracy which the British do not recognise for its superior class. ‘The shifting first-person pronouns in the second paragraph of that obituary emphatically position the author himself; Adams feels equally ignored and alien.’ Yet in spite of his initial bewilderment, Adams gradually adopts the pose of British aristocracy as a model for his later life. As Mayer concluded his assessment of English education: ‘Posing as a young aristocrat of the international set, Henry modelled himself on Richard Monckton Milnes, Lord HoughtonÉ. When at age thirty Henry Adams returned to the United States, he eventually settled down, in the words of The Education, as ‘a young duke in Washington.’

The papers provided the basis for a superbly informed discussion. All speakers acknowledged a debt to the work of Bill Dusinberre, who was among the select audience, with regard to Adams’s English education. The audience was clearly well versed in the historical and literary significance of Henry Adams, and the discussion especially highlighted the importance of Adams’s History as exemplary of the attention to detail and theory which characterises Adams’s contribution to contemporary American Studies. All in all, the session positioned Henry Adams at the centre of relations between History and Literature in American Studies in England.

The South and Southwest

Chair: Jenel Virden (Hull)
Martin Padget (Aberstwyth) ‘”The Ruins of the Old Missions Buildings Were Sad to See, but the Human Ruins were Sadder”: Ramona and the Politics of Romance’
Mark Fanin (Belfast) ‘The Brotherhood of Timber Workers in Louisana and Texas’
Matthew McKee (University of Ulster at Jordanstown ‘”A Peculiar Race”: The Eugenics Movement in the 1920’s and the Scotch-Irish of Southern Appalachia’

In late morning on Saturday I chaired a session on ‘The south and Southwest’ which included three excellent papers on various aspects of southern and south-western history in the late 19th and early 20th century. Martin Padget of Aberystwyth gave a fine paper on Helen Hunt Jackson’s novel Ramona, published in 1887. The novel places the decline of the Native American population and their struggle to maintain a clear identity within a setting of Romance literature. The novel also reflected the early Progressive Era reform impulses as witnessed by Jackson’s Indian activism.

Mark Fanin of Belfast followed on with an interesting paper on the Brotherhood of Timber Workers union in Louisiana and Texas. At its peak, between 1910-1914, the Brotherhood attempted to address various concerns and issues of lumbermen during a time of rapid change in both the economy and in the lumber industry. The Brotherhood reflected the more radical philosophy of its parallel union the Industrial Workers of the World by welcoming African Americans into its rank and file as well as incorporating women (although there were few in the lumber industry) into its membership. Although the Brotherhood did not push for racial equality, its expanded membership (which reached a peak of 20,000 by 1913) clearly went against the dominant Southern culture of the time.

The final paper in the session was delivered by Matthew McKee of University of Ulster who discussed his research on the eugenics movement in 1920s America and its implications for the Scotch-Irish of Appalachia. The eugenics movement fed the anti-immigrant feelings of the 1920s associated with the arrival of ‘new’ immigrants from southern, central and eastern Europe. In addition, McKee demonstrated that the same theories of race were applied to the Scotch-Irish in Southern Appalachia who came to be regarded as a different race; different from white Anglo-Saxon Protestants. Despite coming over to the United States during the colonial period from a truly northern area of Europe, the Scotch-Irish were seen as a threat to the white race and decidedly unprogressive. The legacy of this type of eugenic theory left the inhabitants of the Appalachian region struggling against an image of their ethnicity which portrayed them as lazy and stupid. All three papers cover a wide geographic area and appear to be unrelated until one takes a closer look. In each case the subjects of the papers are in search of an identity – whether it be as a Native American, as a worker, or as the Scotch-Irish. In addition, each of the papers is linked by the issues surrounding race relations. On the issue of race relations, Southern historiography tends to be dominated by the struggle between whites and African Americans. These three papers demonstrate the need to cast the net wider when looking at the history of race relations within a given geographic location.

Femininity and Domesticity

Chair: Susan Castillo, University of Glasgow Carol Smith & Jude Davis (King Alfred’s College, Winchester) ‘White Femininity, Professionalism and Maternity in US Situation Comedy, from I Love Lucy to Murphy Brown’
Lorraine Morley, (Birkbeck College, London) ‘A Chilling Environmental Horror Story: Suburban Domesticity and Feminine Identity in Todd Hayne’s Safe’
Heidi Macpherson (University College, London) ‘Shifting Sands: Anne Tyler and Time(ly) Motherhood’

In this session, panellists provided an intriguing and provocative view of representations of maternity and domesticity from the postwar years to the present.

Jude Davies and Carol Smith, in a joint presentation, analysed the crucial place of white femininity in the construction of American politics on television both before and after second wave feminism. Its crux was the tension between, on the one hand, representations of white femininity as related to ideas and discourses associated with identity politics and with feminism, and, on the other hand, the continued invocation of white femininity as incarnating American national identity. These tensions were brought into focus via analysis of two historical moments when white motherhood was at issue both in television situation comedies and in official political discourses: the treatment of Lucy Ricardo’s pregnancy in I Love Lucy (1952-1953) and the gendered address of Eisenhower’s inaugural speech: and the pregnancy narrative of Murphy Brown (1992), as taken up by Vice President Dan Quayle. Thematic and multivalent nature of television representations of white femininity and national identity, and to stress the importance of constructions of gender and ethnicity in defining ‘America’.

Lorraine Morley’s paper dealt with the dystopic side of suburban reality for women. Set amidst the contemporary landscape of an affluent Californian suburb, Todd Haynes’ film, Safe, according to its reviewers, is the first major expose of the ’20th century illness’: an extreme allergic reaction to our chemical-ridden environment. Julianne Moore plays the suburban housewife who falls prey to the illness that eventually leads to her isolation in a porcelain-lined ‘safe house’ in the New Mexico Desert. This paper argues that whilst Safe is ostensibly a cautionary tale of ecological disaster and its consequences, this ‘chilling environmental horror story’ may be read as a metaphor for a less tangible 20th-century sickness. A crisis of identity precipitated by the sense of displacement conveyed in Haynes’ suburban wasteland. Amidst this domestic no-man’s land, the fitting victim of the illness is a woman. Drawing on Julia Kristeva’s theory of abjection, I explore the physical and emotional disintegration of Haynes’ female character, and suggest that the ‘safe’ haven of suburban domesticity is un-safe: a lethal Eden which threatens the integrity of the woman subject, as it entombs her within a domesticated feminine identity. I conclude by suggesting that the isolation and exclusion through which Safe’s ailing female character responds to her condition may be the logical antidote to her ‘sickness’: her entombment in an identity that she no longer has the stomach for.

Heidi Macpherson’s paper argued convincingly that Anne Tyler’s novels, rather than being simply or cosily ‘realist’ in mode, utilize other forms of narrative in order to question the ‘fictions’ of mothering. In Ladder of Years, Tyler depicts a world in which mothering positions are temporary and shifting, and time itself is represented as unstable and jumbled. Through Delia Grinstead, Tyler addresses the issues of autonomy and femaleness in relation to the community which itself participates in the invention of character, and especially in the invention of ‘good mother’. Tyler problematizes feminist self-discovery novels which enact an escape from society by revealing that a space outside of ideology does not exist. This realization leads to a somewhat dissatisfactory resolution to her novel; however, this paper argued that a less-than-feminist ending does not necessarily equate with an anti- or non-feminist text.

Annual General Meeting (AGM)

The 1998 AGM was held at the University of East Anglia on 18 April. Elections: Philip Davies was elected Chair (to 2001) Jenel Virden was elected Secretary (to 1999) To the BAAS Committee, the following were elected: Karen Wilkinson (2001), Mick Gidley (2001), Douglas Tallack (2001), Nick Selby (2000). Richard Hinchcliffe (2000) is the member representing postgraduate students. Janet Beer, BAAS Treasurer, circulated accounts. She made in particular the following points:

1. Changes in Charities law mean that we do not need a full audit. The accounts are subject to overview by a professional accountant, and are produced by a professional accountant. The new accountant has made many very helpful points regarding the practices of BAAS.

2. The BAAS database is now working very well, and is a considerable resource, especially if members are willing for us to sell/hire the list. This matter will be addressed in the coming year.

3. Fulbright funds have been transferred to the STA fund, with the consent of Fulbright.

4. In order to exploit charitable status, and to reduce the financial stress on the Association and its members, an optional covenanting system will be introduced for members. The accounts were accepted.

The Chair gave an address covering achievements in American Studies over the past year and the threats posed by the QAA proposals. (See Judie Newman’s full text.)

Vigorous discussion followed on the QAA proposals, which were clearly a surprise even to some senior colleagues. Members were encouraged to make representation through their departments and programmes.

A question was put about an earlier plan to commission a history of BAAS. It has proved impossible to raise the money to support this project, but an archive, including oral histories, has been collected and is being deposited with the University of Birmingham Library.

Simon Newman discussed preliminaries for the BAAS Glasgow conference in 1999. Swansea and Oxford were mentioned as possible future conference venues.

Jay Kleinberg, Chair of the Publications Subcommittee, reviewed the situation of all publications.

Douglas Tallack, Chair of the Development Committee, pointed to some evidence of fall-off in undergraduate recruitment, possibly connected to the introduction of fees. He outlined our work to protect and encourage American Studies in schools, and reviewed the conferences and regional groups that BAAS supports.

Mick Gidley, BAAS representative on the Board of the European Association of American Studies (EAAS), reported that more British involvement was needed at the EAAS conference. BAAS is the second largest national association, but has a poor turnout at these events. Currently 18 associations are part of EAAS, with more ready to join.

Under the heading of Any Other Business, conferences on New Orleans (Warwick, July) and OVERhere (Sussex, December) were announced. Elections practice was discussed. The meeting took the position that elections by post were not needed, but that some form of statement from candidates would be useful. The committee will look into altering the time of closing nominations in order to facilitate this. A discussion took place regarding the exclusion of applications from North America to a recent post at Edinburgh University. A member undertook to relay the opinions expressed at the meeting to the University.

‘The Shadow of Nature’: How Artists and Intellectuals Read the Okie Migration to California

Chair: Martin Padget (Aberystwyth)
Lecture: Stephen Fender (Sussex)

Stephen Fender began his lecture by asking why artists and writers such as Dorothea Lange, Arthur Rothstein, John Steinbeck, Carey McWilliams and Archibald MacLeish focused so much on the supposed helplessness of Okies when they represented the Okie migration to California in the 1930s. And further, he asked, why did such intellectuals emphasise the difficulty of providing effective public aid in California for Dust Bowl migrants when the evidence suggests that Okies were far more resourceful than documentary images imply? As became clear by the end of the talk, these questions are part of a broader concern with issues of restlessness and mobility in American history and the degree to which distinctive patterns of culture can be maintained across time and space.

As historians such as Donald Worster have contended, the very term ‘Dust Bowl’ masks reality even as it suggests potent myths about Okie migration. For one, although half of the Texas Panhandle and half of the Oklahoma Panhandle were affected by severe drought and erosion in the 1930s, most of the land affected by the Dust Bowl was in Colorado and Kansas. Also, the collapse of farming during the mid- to late-1930s followed a severe fall in farm prices during the 1920s and the subsequent ill-effects of the Depression. Far from being a new phenomenon, Okie migration of the 1930s echoed the larger influx of Okie migrants to California between 1910 and 1920. And after the 1930s they continued to come, no longer farmers but bound for shipyards and the World War II defence industry. Such facts, Fender contended, suggest the need for memories of the Depression and the Dust Bowl to be modified.

Pointing to Lange’s famous image of a migrant mother and her three young children that seems to epitomise the despair engendered by economic and social depression, Fender gave a fascinating account of how this ‘most concentrated image of desperation and anxiety’ misleads the viewer into thinking that the iconic Dust Bowl mother was passive and helpless in the face of severe hardship. The woman, Florence Thompson, had actually been in California for ten years when the photograph was taken. She was a Cherokee Indian, mother to eleven children and had worked as a union organiser. Recently it has been discovered that her second husband was away fitting a new radiator for the car when Lange photographed her. Far from condemning Lange for creating a misleading image of poverty-stricken despair, Fender argued that the image should be understood as providing propaganda in the good sense. That is the image was taken to elicit the sympathy of middle-class voters and swing public opinion into pushing for State relief funds. While emphasising the need for relief, the image also suggested resilience and endurance and thus, in effect, the strength of the maternal figure lying at the centre of the ‘uprooted’ Okie family.

Turning to Steinbeck’s fiction and reportage, Fender asked why in In Dubious Battle there is such an emphasis on ‘glooming down’ the fate of Okie migrants. He attributed much of this to the influence on Steinbeck of Ed Ricketts, whose evolutionary theory of human action dictated that when in combination people work on impulse. By the time he was writing The Grapes of Wrath, however, Steinbeck had modified his understanding of collaborative action after gaining access to FSA camps and learning much about Okie experiences through FSA camp organiser Tom Collins (an apostle of the belief in self-help for migrants).

But of course in the novel the Joads don’t remain within the FSA camp and instead, in a fictional ploy that does not mirror historical reality, move on. Fender saw Steinbeck’s insistence on continued displacement as common among intellectuals representing Okies in California. Why was there such an emphasis on displacement and moving on? There are two main reasons. First, many intellectuals representing the Okie migration posed the problem facing Okies inaccurately. They presumed that mobility was wrong for farmers and characterised the Okie migration using natural metaphors. Thus the Okies were ‘uprooted’ and had been forced to move because of soil erosion, suggesting that the problem was inherent in them rather than in the market. Second, intellectuals subscribed to a deeper prejudice, namely that migration must entail cultural failure. Okies appeared to arrive in California without culture. Theirs was a culture of poverty. Fender provided fascinating details about public health advice given to Okies, as though they lacked knowledge of either a decent diet or hygiene, and demonstrated that really Okies were resourceful and adaptive. Thus they maintained a distinctive pattern of culture in poverty.

Fender concluded by stating that ‘uprooted’ is too strong a term to describe the Okie migration. Okies were neither uprooted nor displaced culturally. Indeed their exodus to California was not historically exceptional for their westward movement was part of a larger pattern of repeat migration for British immigrants initially drawn to the Chesapeake region in the 17th century. Fender ended by suggesting that insofar as such mobility has been characteristic of immigrant groups throughout American history, the truly uprooted in American culture were those commentators of the 1930s who didn’t understand how ‘traditional’ societies could maintain themselves through movement and their dynamic responses to changed circumstances.

Film and Visual Arts

Chair: Jonathan Munby (Lancaster)
Margaret Roberts (Exeter) ‘Performative Discourses of Dependency: Black on White in A Streetcar Named Desire and In the Heat of the Night’
Danielle Ramsay (Newcastle) ‘The Lethal Weapon Films and the Biracial Buddy Movie’
Adam Roberts (Royal Holloway) ‘Blackness in Men in Black’

This panel shared a collective concern in revealing how ‘Blackness’ has constituted an informing, structuring and enabling cultural logic in the Hollywood cinema.

Margaret Roberts evaluated the structuring absence of race in A Streetcar Named Desire, detailing how a White imagined Black male identity (stereotyped as the natural man, the mythical black rapist as threat to Southern White womanhood) deeply inflects Brando’s performance (as Stanley Kowalski) as ‘the White Negro.’ Arguing that understanding movies as ‘texts’ misses the vital aspect of performance in Hollywood cinema, the paper revealed how Brando’s invocations of Blackness in his gestures and mannerisms were reinforced by the manipulation of the movie’s mise-en-scene (in terms of blocking, lighting, camera angles, and music – the Blues) by director Elia Kazan – all of which was exacerbated by Vivien Leigh’s wistful performance of Southern White womanhood as the appropriately named ‘Blanche.’

Danielle Ramsay’s paper on biracial buddy movies extended these insights through an equally nuanced reading of the reversals of traditional race-role designations in the Lethal Weapon movies of the late 1980s. Having highlighted how Mel Gibson takes up an (in)appropriate place as the White Negro in the movie’s symbolic structure, while Danny Glover assumes the White Father’s position as stable family patriarch, the paper went onto engage questions of how racial stereotypes (especially the image of a rogue black masculinity) are essential to the way the Lethal Weapon films rework, mediate, and mobilize an Oedipal drama of father/son relations. Thus, while the issue of race might not be openly acknowledged as vital to these films, it serves to amplify Freudian scenarios endemic to Hollywood melodrama.

Having initially highlighted the value of the imaginative space of science-fiction to open-up a discussion of the function of Blackness as ‘alien’ and ‘threatening,’ Adam Roberts’ paper, ‘Blackness in Men in Black,’ delved into the self-conscious performance of Blackness by Will Smith. Arguing that the movie’s excessive replication of well-established biracial conventions brings about a partial divestment of the White cultural capital invested in Blackness (especially Black male identity), the paper discussed how the White signifier of anonymity – the black corporate suit – becomes a signifier of difference when worn by Will Smith (who manages to invest the suit with new cultural capital – that of ‘cool’). While a tone level the film indulges in a glorification of the power of repressive technologies (of White corporate conspiracy), this exists in tension with Will Smith’s ironic exposure of this power’s operating terms – a capacity only available to Will Smith because of his ability to manipulate the signifying power of Blackness.

The South

Chair: Michael Heale (Lancaster)
Nathaniel Pitts (UEA) ‘North and South: The Experiences of African-American Soldiers during the Second World War’
Steven J. Niven (North Carolina, Chapel Hill) ‘Black Power, White Power: Tobacco Workers and Race in North Carolina, 1945-1965.’

A roomful of historians was delighted to get to grips with some real history in this session. The two papers both arose out of doctoral dissertations, and the two speakers beguilingly shared the findings of their research in ways that connected with larger historiographical concerns.

In Nat Pitts’s account the South was not so exceptional, his focus being on the experience of African American servicemen not overseas but within the United States. The dramatic expansion of black troops during the Second World War meant that many were stationed outside the South, and riots and other confrontations involving them occurred in locations throughout the country. Northern communities as well as southern protested at the stationing of black troops in their midst, and practised their own versions of Jim Crow. This research calls into question that interpretation of the origins of the civil rights movement that suggests that service in the North had a liberating effect on blacks; if anything, the military was tending to extend segregation in the North.

Steve Niven also offered a revisionist thesis, questioning the familiar picture of a southern labour movement invigorated by the war but quickly demoralised by post-war racism and McCarthyism. In the case of Durham tobacco workers, who were organised in separate black and white AFL locals, he noted the significant degree of cooperation between black and white officials. White unionists supported the election of blacks to municipal offices, and a coalition of black and white activists for several years controlled the county’s Democratic party and promoted progressive policies. But in the aftermath of the Brown decision racial cooperation gave way to conflict, as rank-and-file white workers began to fear for their skilled jobs. White-black collaboration could withstand red- and race-baiting, but not once did it directly challenge the principle of segregation.

In a lively discussion ranging across the wider racial tensions of the 1940s and 1950s, the relationships of black soldiers with white officers, the distinctive moral economy of Durham, and the wartime role of Sam Shepperson in the Kenya African Rifles, the audience added its own nuances to the revisionist interpretations offered by the two speakers.

Modernisms

Chair: Professor Deborah Madsen (South Bank University)
Dr Nick Selby (University of Wales, Swansea), ‘”To Write Paradise”: American Poetics and the Cantos of Ezra Pound’
Dr Andrew Lawson (Staffordshire University) ‘H.D.’s Eugenic Paganism’
Dr Victoria Bazin (University of Northumbria), ‘Marianne Moore, Modernism, Gender and the Modern Metropolis’

This session raised some interesting issues of American cultural identity, and gender and racial constructions in the literature of the early twentieth century, and provoked a correspondingly lively discussion which was only brought to a conclusion by the too-rapid arrival of the morning coffee break!

Nick Selby began his talk with the Emerson’s famous essay of 1844, ‘The Poet’, in which he struggles to articulate his sense of American literary and cultural identity by noting that ‘America is a poem in our eyes … its ample geography dazzles the imagination’. Selby demonstrates and analyses the ways in which Ezra Pound’s The Cantos emerges out of an American poetic geography, out of a struggle ‘to write the land’. He sees this struggle as crucial to an American poetics because it voices a central concern of American ideology, namely the desire to see the New World as a paradise. After over sixty years spent writing The Cantos Pound asks, in a late fragment, to be forgiven for his failure to write a poetic paradise: I have tried to write Paradise,’ he writes, Do not move / Let the wind speak / that is paradise // Let the Gods forgive what I have made’.

Selby examines in detail the relationship of Pound’s modernism to his romantic forefathers, especially Whitman. He argues that the epic ambition of both Whitman’s Leaves of Grass and Pound’s The Cantos has its roots in Anglo-America’s colonial imagination: these poems testify to a desire to write an identity for America through its poetry. This is seen in the sprawling provisionality of Whitman’s poem, which mirrors the westward expansion of America at the time, and in Pound’s desire to write his modernist epic as a poem that includes history’. In both cases, however, he argues that the production of an American poetics is as much the result of the pressures of burgeoning capitalism and the instability of a language of selfhood as it is the result of myths of national identity.

Selby’s reading of The Cantos, then, presents it as both the modernist American epic poem par excellence, and as a classic’ American text. In its political and cultural difficulties, Pound’s epic is not only a test-case for reassessing the legacy of modernist aesthetics, but also the exemplary ground upon which a New Americanist critique of the poetics of American identity can be built.

In Andrew Lawson’s paper he argues that H.D.’s modernist project of self-invention in the autobiographical novel Her (1927) involves an identification with the Negro as an idealized ‘other’ who will enable the banalities of ‘Anglo-Saxonism’ in the 1900s to be transcended. Crucially, however, this identification also allows the class privileges and cultural authority of Anglo-Saxonism to be maintained. In order to explain this apparent contradiction Lawson analyzes Her in relation to the contemporary discourses of eugenics and Hellenism. He begins by arguing that the militant claims for civil rights made by W.E.B. Du Bois and the Niagara Falls Movement in the 1900s make the traditional paternalist strategy of ‘Negrophilia,’ or identification with the ‘coloured mammy’ stereotype, problematic since it appears that African Americans are no longer prepared to adopt the role of domestic docility. H.D.’s text shows an attempt to discover deeper racial ‘kinships’ by deploying the scientific discourse of eugenics in its project of self-invention. Her defines its central character, Hermione Gart as ‘Nordic,’ using the specialized vocabulary of the American eugenicists William Z. Ripley and Madison Grant to establish a ‘scientifically’ validated European genealogy. The novel also adopts, via Walter Pater’s Greek studies, the late Victorian discourse of what Martin Bernal has called ‘Aryan’ Hellenism: the construction of ‘Dorian’ culture as the citadel of Greekness, the distillation of Western rationality and culture as opposed to ‘Ionian’ or Asian barbarism. In this process of adoption, the Negro domestic servant, Mandy, is aestheticized and Orientalized, converted into an ‘Ionian bronze’: a specular projection of otherness which confirms the cultural distinction and authority of whiteness. The result of this combination of discursive regimes is what Ezra Pound calls ‘eugenic paganism.’

Thus, while a discourse may be appropriated for the purposes of individual self-invention, the ideological functions of a discourse as it pertains to confirming group identity and privilege are, at the same time, confirmed. It seems misleading, therefore, to describe the condition of being simultaneously ‘inside’ and ‘outside’ discourse as, in Homi Bhabha’s term, ‘ambivalence,’ since this suggests a psychic hesitation between alternative identities. What Her shows is an ambivalence which is resolved through a more or less conscious political decision: to reject the Negro as a figure of exotic abjection, and identify with ‘Nordic’ authority and distinction.

Victoria Bazin draws into relation with the concept of Modernity the notion of the city as a gendered space as an alternative to the Modernist image of the city as a symbol of cultural decline or the site of encounter with the ‘Other’. In Marianne Moore’s poetry the city becomes a place of potential liberation for women, a place where the possibilities for transgression are rich amid the carnivalesque imagery and ephemera of urban living. Bazin suggests that Moore may have discovered in Henry James this sense of ‘gusto’ as characteristic of urban culture: a perception of the city as a site of romance, of excess. In this way, Moore’s representation of the city as haunted by the spectre of modernity but enriched by the process of fragmentation and the proliferation of ephemeral fragments, simulacra that are empowering rather than threatening, places her in opposition to some of the dominant American voices of Modernism.

Plenary Lecture

Chair: Philip Davies
Malcolm Bradbury (Emeritus Professor, University of East Anglia) ‘The American Philosophes in France.’

A career as critic, analyst, broadcaster, writer, novelist and academic (latest publication: Introduction to American Studies, 2nd. edition) has more layers than most, and Malcolm Bradbury’s introduced his audience to a project in which many of these layers interweave. Colleagues were taken on a tour of the life of, and influences on Chateaubriand, resident in France, and visionary visitor to the USA. This came after an exploration of Russia, and particularly St. Petersburg, through the eyes of Catherine the Great and the (mostly discarded) theories of Diderot. Diderot went east to seek his fortune, and returned west to Paris having had his bills paid for at least a while. Chauteaubriand decided to go west in a futile search for the Northwest Passage, successful meetings with Native Americans and white immigrants, both noble and not so noble, and views of Niagara and the Natural Bridge. He returned east, though, to Bungay in Suffolk, not to France, and these wonders he had seen, together with his awareness of some of the cruel realities of the opening of America, fed his writing, as they now stimulate that of Malcolm Bradbury. This skilfully woven talk brought a most successful BAAS conference to end on a high note.

How African are African-Americans

Chair: Simon Middleton (East Anglia)
Lecture: Howard Temperley (East Anglia)

Drawing upon his research in African history and recent commentary and debates within American identity politics, journalism and the popular press, Professor Temperley challenged the claim of Black American culture to African origins. In Professor Temperley’s view the ‘African’ component of Black American culture, both historically and currently, has less to do with retention and cultural inheritance and more with contemporary struggles over race and identity within the academic profession and American society at large. In the lively debate which followed Professor Temperley was challenged to account for the findings of historical anthropology relating to African cultural practices in the US and to extend his critique of cultural construction beyond his claims regarding African-American culture. By the end of the session it was clear that Professor Temperley had raised important questions regarding the use of the culture concept in history, in particular concerning the difficulties in trying to distinguish between culture as a transferable shared system of practices and meanings and culture as something generated and formed in particular contexts and in response to contemporary social relations

Forum

Simon Newman (University of Glasgow)
‘United States 2, Rest of the World 0: The Promise of Multicultural Football’

The upcoming World Cup will be a very French affair. Most seats have been reserved for French fans and sponsors, and each ticket will be imprinted with the holder’s name to ensure that none but the French will sit amongst the French. Meanwhile tens of thousands of police and security officials will surround the fans of other countries, separating them from one another and from their French hosts, employing the threat of state sanctioned violence to keep the peace as the tribal chants of rampant nationalism echo around the French stadia. How sad it is that the world’s most popular sport continues to separate far more than it unites. Four years ago, however, the multicultural potential of both football and of the United States was readily apparent when the world came to America. It was a potential that eluded or unnerved some Americans, while it thrilled and enthralled thousands more, illustrating the bitterly divisive contests over the emergence of a new, multicultural America in the sport that is played by more Americans than is any other.

Watching the games in Chicago, the gap between the reality of the World Cup as a multicultural endeavour and the myth of a monocultural America was all too apparent. Of all the teams that played in Chicago, it was the Germans who were most popular with the reporters of the Chicago Tribune. Germany were the defending champions, and the surrounding midwest was home to a sizable German population (with about 1.8 million German Americans in the Chicago area alone), and they were white western Europeans who fit the image of WASP melting-pot America a good deal better than the Bolivians, Greeks, Spaniards and Bulgarians, whose teams also played in Chicago. When the Germans arrived, the Tribune noted with pleasure that lamp posts around the team’s suburban hotel were decorated with German flags and banners wishing them ‘Viel gluck’ – ‘lots of luck.’ 1 Three weeks later the Germans left for their quarter-final game, and the Tribune said ‘goodbye to the global representatives of the world’s most popular athletic endeavor,’ despite the fact that the Germans had never found their rhythm and did not look at all like champions. But the Tribune’s headline said it all: ‘World comes to end: German team leaves.’ 2

The differences in Tribune reporting of the Germans and their opponents was quite remarkable. In the opening game the defending champions met Bolivia, and despite the stifling heat and the silly speeches, some 65,000 fans thoroughly enjoyed the opening ceremonies. With more than a little surprise, the Tribune noted of the fans that ‘the Bolivians seemed to have the most spirit,’ but then went on to reassure readers that, of course, ‘the Germans had the numbers.’ 3

What the Tribune reporters missed, but was quite obvious to the fans at Soldier Field was that almost all of the 12,000 odd German fans had come from Germany. Most German emigrants came to the United States before soccer was an established part of German culture, and few of their German American descendants are familiar with the sport or consider it part of their own ethno-cultural heritage. Thus relatively few German Americans got particularly excited about the World Cup or went out of their way to attend the games. But most of the Greek, Spanish, Bulgarian and Bolivian Americans have come to this country far more recently. The vast majority of those supporting Bolivia, and there were a good many more than 12,000, had not travelled from Bolivia, but were instead drawn from the many hundreds of thousands of Chicagoans who traced their ancestry to Latin America. What entirely escaped the Chicago Tribune reporters was that the most heavily foreign group of fans to visit Chicago were the Germans: the Greek, Spanish, Bulgarian and Bolivian fans were far less foreign and far more American.

But while the Tribune writers realized that most of those attending the games came from the Chicagoland area, they did not realize the significance of this fact.4 Implicit in most of their reporting was the assumption that soccer was not an American sport, and that consequently this was a fundamentally foreign event, and was in a very real sense un-American. Only one television network, the Miami-based Spanish language network Univision Broadcasting, showed every one of the World Cup games. The president of their Chicago affiliate WCIU estimated that there were at least 650,000 Mexican Americans in the Chicagoland area, to say nothing of those with roots in other central and southern American countries, or the 400,000 odd Greek Americans in Chicago, and the many more Italian and Irish Americans.5 Soccer was far from alien to these ethnic Americans.

This is one aspect of multicultural America, shown in the ways that different racial and ethnic groups hold on to aspects of their social and cultural heritage while yet adding more colors to the spectrum of American society. Soccer is American, but only if one allows for a definition of American that will include the socio-cultural heritage of Greeks, Mexicans, Italians, Irish and others who play and watch soccer. But Tribune reporters, extremely sensitive to the fact that WASP America was not part of this rainbow, could not help but see it as foreign and un-American.

In the ‘Food Guide’ section of the Tribune, for example, two reporters described the ethnic neighborhoods and restaurants that would be of interest to the teams and fans visiting Chicago, Schulien’s for the Germans, Ba-Ba-Reeba for the Spanish, Rinconcito for the Bolivians, Little Bucharest for the Bulgarians, Santorini for the Greeks.6 But there was no sense, or at least no acknowledgment of the fact that most of those who attended the games were Americans who lived in these neighborhoods, and who dined at these restaurants, and perhaps more significantly, at McDonalds and Burger King all the time.

The shared soccer heritage of these ethnic groups was evident long before the World Cup came to town. To begin with, one can watch professional soccer at a variety of ethnic taverns. The crowds at these events usually contain a majority that reflects the ethnicity of the tavern, but many more from other ethnic groups attend, and this was especially true during the World Cup itself.

These traditions are even more evident in the playing of soccer. There are 15 soccer leagues in the Chicagoland area, comprising about 500 teams and over 10,000 players. The Metropolitan League is the best, with sizable numbers of Italian, German, Polish, Serbian and Croatian American players. The most enjoyable is the Hispano and International League, boasting players whose roots are as distant as Haiti, Nigeria and Belize. The large majority of the players in the Chicago Latin American Soccer Association are Mexican American. Some of the players in all of these leagues are foreign-born, but the majority are native-born American citizens, yet that is not how the Tribune reporters see them. It was only after reporting that nearly 90% of the players in the Chicago Latin American Soccer Association were ‘Mexican’ that reporter Bob Condor admitted that well over half of them were American-born.7

There is a clear contradiction here. In the eyes of Tribune reporters one is either Mexican or American, but an individual who is both and a soccer player to boot completely confounded these writers. This confusion was heightened by the Tribune’s regular and ongoing reporting of little league and high school soccer games in Chicago’s vast suburbs. Over the past couple of decades soccer has become one of the most popular sports in suburban high schools, and many middle American white girls and boys have played and enjoyed the sport. Their championship games are regularly reported in the Sports section of the Tribune, and have become an accepted part of the high school and college sports scene.

But the large majority of adult male players are ethnic Americans: to the Tribune they remained foreign, different and other. And the same was true of the visiting teams from Bolivia, Greece, Bulgaria and Spain. This became particularly clear when I read reports about the hotels and the training sessions of these visiting teams. All stayed outside the ethnically rich city itself, opting for the wide open spaces of the affluent suburbs of DuPage County. Some twenty five miles west of the city, DuPage is monocultural America, solidly middle class and about 90% white. Even the Tribune made note of this, commenting that the World Cup teams had ‘brought a certain incongruity to suburbia’: it did not occur to Tribune reporters that in the ethnically and racially rich multicultural America of the late-twentieth century, it is the white suburbs that are becoming ever more incongruous.8

Perhaps this accounts for the defensiveness and the negativity in much of the Tribune’s reporting of the World Cup. For in Soldier Field one could see some indication of the ever increasing racial and ethnic diversity of multicultural America. The World Cup illustrated that after two centuries Crevecoeur’s tantalizing question ‘What is an American?’ remains not only unanswered but deeply contested.9 Crevecoeur observed that in ‘this great American asylum… Europeans become Americans,’10 but as the American century ends it is people of South American and Asian descent who are becoming Americans, challenging us to reformulate a white European vision of American identity. To the majority of fans attending the games it was abundantly clear that soccer, and presumably a great deal more, is not part of exotic foreign cultures. It is a vibrant part of the new America, but issues of class, race and ethnicity blind most of middle America to its presence. In soccer, as in food, religion and a great many other rites, ethnic and racial communities come together and form a new kind of majority: this is what threatened the Tribune reporters and their largely white readership.

Throughout the nineteenth century the immigrants who poured into America believed that to be successful and to become American they needed to emulate the white western European model. What is different today, as ‘the culture wars’ become every more bitter, is that an increasing number of academics and social commentators are acknowledging that the America of the next century will no longer fit this imposed pattern. Within a few years Spanish will be the first language of a majority of the students in California high schools, Latin Americans will comprise over half of the working population in the City of Angels, and by 2050 California will be ‘majority minority.’11

In Soldier Field one could detect some small glimmerings of how American society will begin to re-answer Crevecoeur’s question in the next century. Ordinary Americans, perhaps unwittingly, are redefining their national identity in relationship to the country’s multicultural reality. They are moving beyond the melting pot, and beyond a white-imposed and mediated pluralism, and are taking the nation towards a ‘cacophonous and conflictual’ new America whose citizens neither shed old identities nor acquire new ones in order to become Americans.12 As a result, the United States remains the most interesting and certainly the most appropriate nation to host the World Cup.

1. Andrew Bagnato, ”Viel gluck’ – Germans arrive,’ Chicago Tribune, Tuesday 14 June 1994. Back
2. Ted Gregory, ‘World Comes to end: German team leaves,’ Tribune, Saturday 9 July, 1994. Back
3. Colin McMahon and Sue Ellen Christian, ‘Chicago Says Welcome to the World,’ Tribune, Saturday 18 June 1994. Back
4. See ‘Ted Gregory, ‘World comes to end.’ Back
5. Jean Davidson, ‘World Cup Goal: New increase in U.S. fans,’ Tribune, TV Week, Sunday 12 June 1994. Back
6. Pat Dailey and Steven Pratt, ‘Chicago Winners,’ Tribune, Thursday 16 June 1994. Back
7. Bob Condor, ‘Field of Teams,’ Tribune, Friday 10 June 1994. Back
8. Ted Gregory, ”Cup teams take world to DuPage,’ Tribune, Thursday 16 June 1994. Back
9. J. Hector St. John de Crevecoeur, Letters From an American Farmer (1782), (New York, 1957), 35. Back
10. Ibid., 27, 44. Back
11. Evelyn Hu-DeHart, ‘Rethinking America: The Practice and Politics of Multiculturalism in Higher Education,’ in Beyond A Dream Deferred: Multicultural Education and the Politics of Excellence, ed. Becky W. Thompson and Sangeeta Tyagi, (Minneapolis, 1993), 7. Back
12. Duster, ‘The Diversity at California at Berkeley: An Emerging Reformulation of ‘Competence’ in an Increasingly Multicultural World,’ in Beyond A Dream Deferred, 234. Back

News from American Studies Centres

The David Bruce Centre for American Studies, Keele University

The David Bruce Centre for American Studies welcomed two Research Fellows for the second semester 1997/98. They are Dr. Daniel Preston of the College of William and Mary, Virginia, and Regents Professor of Political Science and Statistics at Oklahoma State University, Robert Darcy. Dr. Preston is editing the papers of James Monroe. Professor Darcy is researching the role of women and minorities in American politics.

The Centre also hosted the Canada United Kingdom Colloquium held at Keele from 23 to 26 November. The theme of the conference was the ‘Implications of the Communications Revolution for Canada and the UK.’ The dinner was addressed by Sir Nicholas Bayne, former British High Commissioner to Canada and His Excellency the Hon. Roy MacLaren, Canadian High Commissioner.

The Centre was also the recipient of a number of books from the estate of the late Jim Hardy, who graduated in American Studies from Keele in 1968. He went on to teach at Queens College, New York, and then became Vice President for Human Resources at Citibank, New York. He had asked for the books to be dedicated to the memory of the late John Lees, who had taught and inspired him.

Recent research acquisitions include: Chicago Defender, 1985-1997; Variety, 1991-1997, US Statutes at Large (complete) and Lyndon B. Johnson National Security Files: Vietnam, 1963-1969 and Vietnam: Special Subjects. The Centre welcomes inquiries about its other holdings.

In addition, the Bruce Centre and the Centre of American Studies, University of Hong Kong, have concluded an Academic Exchange and Collaboration Agreement. The Agreement provides for exchange of postgraduate students and faculty, joint research activities and the organization of joint conferences. It is envisaged that the general area of U.S. foreign policy will constitute core activity.

Applications for the Centre’s MAs in American History, American History and Politics and American Literature and Culture are still being considered, as are applications for doctoral degrees.

Institute For United States Studies

The major public event of the Institute’s year is the James Bryce Lecture on the American Commonwealth. Inaugurated in 1996 by the Institute’s Chairman, Lady Thatcher, the second lecture was delivered in 1997 by Professor Arthur M Schlesinger, Jr. In addition, the Institute has established the Cleanth Brooks Lecture on American Literature and Culture which was inaugurated by Joseph Epstein in 1997. The second Cleanth Brooks Lecture will be delivered by Sir Frank Kermode on October 28th, 1998. The Thatcher, Schlesinger and Epstein lectures are all available for purchase from the Institute.

In addition to many public lectures and seminars, the Institute organises the John M Olin Programme on Politics, Morality and Citizenship. The Olin lecturers to date have been Professor Roger Scruton, Martha Bayles, F Carolyn Graglia, Professor Lino Graglia (University of Texas at Austin) and Professor Stephen B Presser (Northwestern University School of Law), Professor Jean Bethke Elshtain (University of Chicago), Professor Harvey C Mansfield, Jr, (Harvard University), Professor Kenneth Minogue (formerly of the London School of Economics), Professor JR Pole (formerly of St Catherine’s College, Oxford). All the Olin Lectures are available as monographs by the Institute. On May 5-6 the Institute hosted a two day international conference on Lessons on Federalism: What Europe Might Learn from America at the Royal Institute of British Architects. The keynote address was given by L Douglas Wilder, former Governor of Virginia; other speakers included Bill Cash MP, former United States Attorney General Edwin Meese III, Ambassador Philip Lader, Sir Roy Denman, Hugh Brogan, Robert McKeever, AJ Badger and AE Dick Howard. The conference was supported in part by the United States Information Service.

In addition to its public programmes, the Institute offers a one-year full time and two- year part time MA in United States Studies with courses in American History, Political Thought, International Relations, Politics, Constitutional History, Music, Literature, Hollywood and the History of Popular Film, War Studies and Economic History.

The Institute has also recently re-established its research programme leading to the MPhil/PhD in United States Studies. The Institute also has two non-stipendiary fellowship programmes: the John Adams Fellowships and Visiting Research Fellowships, both of which are open to members of the British Association for American Studies. Information on all of these activities, including how to join the Institute’s mailing list, can be obtained from

Mrs Anna Brooke
Programme Officer
Institute of United States Studies
Senate House
Malet Street
London WC1E 7HU.

Please note new telephone and fax numbers:
Tel: (0 11 44) 171 862 8691
Fax: (0 11 44) 171 862 8696
Email: abrooke@sas.ac.uk

American Studies/Middlesex University

When not preparing for our QAA inspection (result: 22 out of 24), staff in the American Studies programme at Middlesex University have been busy with the following:

Clive Bloom has published Cult Fiction (Macmillan and St Martin’s Press, 1997) and, as editor, Gothic Horror (Macmillan and St Martin’s, 1998). He is speaking at the ‘Coming Down Fast! Replaying the 1960s’ conference at the University of Wolverhampton, July 10-12.

Douglas Eden has edited The Future of the Atlantic Community (Middlesex University Press, 1997), and is currently working on two further collections for Macmillan. He is also organising a conference on European Integration and the Transatlantic Relationship and Trade, to be held at Middlesex’s Trent Park campus on Friday 12 June (for details e-mail D.Eden@mdx.ac.uk).

Vivien Miller’s book Violent Crime, Sexual Deviancy and Executive Clemency in Florida, 1889-1918 will shortly be published by the University of Florida Press. She recently gave a paper at the Cambridge University conference on Southern Women’s History.

Having spent much of last year teaching and researching in the US on a Fulbright Scholarship, Hugh Wilford is currently writing Britain, America, and the Cultural Cold War, 1945-60. He is speaking at the conference on ‘Anglo-American Relations in the Twentieth Century’, ICBH (Senate House, London University), 6-8 July. Dr Hugh Wilford Curriculum Leader for American Studies Middlesex University White Hart Lane London N17 8HR Tel: 0181 362-6018

American Studies at Glasgow

We are proud to announce the creation of the Andrew Hook Centre for American Studies at the University of Glasgow, named to honour Andrew in the year of his retirement. In addition to administering a new taught M.Phil. in American Studies, the Centre will build on Glasgow’s traditional strengths in American history, literature, and media studies, and will sponsor conferences, lectures, seminars and a variety of events. On May 22nd the Centre will sponsor a seminar entitled ‘American History: The View From Glasgow,’ which will include a roundtable discussion of the books published by Glasgow staff members Michael French, Simon Newman and Phillips O’Brien, and a lecture by Professor Tony Badger entitled ‘American History in Britain: The Glasgow Model.’ We are collaborating with Waterstone’s to bring major writers to campus over the coming year, including Toni Morrison and Gore Vidal, and with the United States Consulate in Edinburgh in order to stage seminars and lectures to celebrate their bicentennial. In March of 1999 we shall host the annual conference of the British Association for American Studies, and in the summer of 2001 the Omohundro Institute of Early American History and Culture will hold their annual meeting here, which will be the first occasion on which they have met outside of the United States.

Simon Newman

American Studies/University of Central Lancaster

The team has established a series of research seminars in American Studies-related areas, and guests this year have included Professor Laura Mulvey, and Professor Wilfred Samuels from Ohio State University. We are looking to develop the series further next year, and will be glad to send out details of seminars to colleagues, particularly those in the North-West. Contact Dr Alan Rice a.rice@uclan.ac.uk.

American Studies is closely involved in the Maastricht Center for Transatlantic Studies, which has taken its first students and staff on short term exchange at the campus in Maastricht. Further details are available from Dr Will Kaufman w.kaufman@uclan.ac.uk.

American Studies/University of Central Lancashire – QAA Visit Result

American Studies at the University of Central Lancashire was recently rated 24 out of 24 following a QAA visit, one of the few so-called ‘new’ universities ever to receive this top mark. One area particularly praised was the innovative nature of the curriculum, which was revalidated some years ago to include greater emphasis on cultural theory and the interrogation of American cultural hegemony. A second noteworthy feature of this outstanding result for Preston was that every single teaching observation was rated with a top mark of 4. Combined with the award of non-formula funding in the 1996 RAE, it seems as though Preston is a place to watch for developments in the discipline. Congratulations!

Liverpool Hope University College

Stephen Perrin presented a guest lecture on ‘William S. Burroughs: Beyond the Temporal Paradox’ on April 15, 1998, at the Department of Anglo-American Studies of the University of Catania, Italy.

Newcastle: Historic Images Found in Robinson Library

Some of the earliest photographic images in the world have been found in Newcastle’s Robinson Library. The discovery of ten daguerreotypes, which date from 1840 and include the oldest-known photographic images of Niagara Falls, taken only a few months after daguerreotyping was invented, is causing great excitement in the UK and US.

‘The story began when a box marked daguerreotypes was unearthed,’ explains David Perrow, Deputy Librarian. ‘The images were labelled HL Pattinson, April 1840, identified as Hugh Pattinson, an eminent industrialist and metallurgist.

‘Eight of the images are of Niagara Falls and were taken by Pattinson whilst sightseeing after a business trip to the USA. They are the first photographs ever taken in Canada, as well as being the first photographs of Niagara. The two other images are of Rome and were taken by Lerebours, a famous daguerreotypist, before being acquired by Pattinson. All the images were badly in need of restoration and their age and significance demanded specialist expertise.’

An appeal on the Internet led to an offer of help from George Eastman House, the International Museum of Photography in Rochester, New York, who are world experts on daguerreotypes. ‘These images are one of the most important finds in the field of photographic history in years,’ said Anthony Bannon, Director of George Eastman House.

The restored images were exhibited in New York this summer and have now been returned to Newcastle for further conservation work. They will be exhibited in the University’s Robinson Library in Spring 1998.

Librarians believe they have solved the mystery of why the daguerreotypes remained undiscovered for so long. The family of Pattinson’s great granddaughter, Gertrude Bell, best known for her travels and political work in the Middle East in the early 20th century, donated an archive of 7,000 photographs, diaries and manuscripts to Newcastle University after her death in 1926. ‘It seems her grandfather’s daguerreotypes were donated at the same time, put to one side whilst the huge photographic archive was catalogued and not rediscovered until some 70 years later,’ concludes David Perrow.

A New Resource for American Studies: The Eric Mottram Collection at King’s College London

by Shamoon Zamir

Eric Mottram (1924-1995) was Emeritus Professor of English and American Literature at King’s College London. He was appointed Lecturer in American literature in 1961, the first such post in Britain, and was, in 1963, a co-founder of London University’s Institute of United States Studies, the first of its kind in the country. An original and accomplished American Studies scholar, he is well known for his pioneering work on the Beat writers and on post-World War II American poetry. But Mottram also wrote extensively on the likes of Melville, Poe, Whitman, Twain, Faulkner, Hemingway, Pound, and Williams. His cultural investigations stretched from the relations of law and literature, technology and culture (including superb studies of guns and cars in American culture), the fears of invasion in American society, to the rock culture of the 1960s, the music of John Cage and the use of Sufi philosophy and poetics in post-World War II American poetry. Himself an accomplished poet, Mottram was also one of the moving forces behind what he himself referred to as ‘the British poetry revival’ which has been underway in the world of the small presses since the 1960s – though that is an aspect of his work that cannot be dealt with here. All in all there are several books and pamphlets of literary and cultural criticism, over twenty books of poetry and over two hundred articles. Less easy to quantify, though no less significant, is Mottram’s work as a teacher and educator. Anyone who has studied with him will testify to what in today’s academic world appears as a reckless generosity with his time and energy.

The extensive archive of books, papers, audio tapes and other materials which Mottram left behind constitutes a unique research resource for American studies and contemporary British literature. The heart of the Collection is made up of some 12,000 books, hundreds of boxes of papers and several hundred audio cassettes. The books cover a very wide range of topics but special areas of strength include first editions and rare items relating to Beat writers and post-World War II American and British poetry. As far as the American materials are concerned there is no comparable collection in Britain. The papers consist of Mottram’s own drafts, manuscripts and research notes (containing a great deal of unpublished scholarship and poetry), correspondence with a wide range of writers in America and Britain (including Ginsberg, Duncan, Jerome Rothenberg, and Basil Bunting), and Mottram’s diaries and creative notebooks. These latter provide not only a valuable record of Mottram’s own development but also essential records of contemporary literary and cultural history. For instance, Mottram was teaching at Kent State University in America in 1970 when student protesters were shot. He was involved in the counselling of both students and staff and kept a detailed journal of those days. The vast majority of the tapes (begun in the 1960s) are original recordings of poetry readings, interviews, lectures and discussions done by Mottram himself. In addition the archive contains a small selection of artworks by contemporary British artists and a library of LP records covering classical, jazz and world musics. Mottram often quoted the American poet and scholar Muriel Rukeyser’s conviction that ‘the range must be taken.’ The Eric Mottram Collection is without doubt the work of such a creative ambition.

The Mottram Archive is open to interested members of both the academic and non-academic communities. For further information please call the archive at 0171 873 2015.

Area Studies Database of Expertise in the UK

The first ever comprehensive, web-based database of its kind, the Area Studies Database of Expertise in the UK is bringing together extensive listings of academic experts, together with their contact details, language skills and research interests for users to access via a specially designed web interface. Funded by HEFCE, theESRC and the Foreign & Commonwealth Office the Database is based at the University of Manchester and is co-ordinated by Dr. Pandeli Glavanis, Ms. Cynthia Carter, Ms. Laura Turney and Professor Richard Werbner.

Convenient and easy to use, the Database will provide a number of different ways to search for information and will be an invaluable tool for both academic, business, media and other users who will be able to easily access information via clickable web links designed to take the user quickly and directly to the appropriate individuals and/or research centres. Thus, a prospective user with an interest in Canada will be able to focus on a discipline, language or institution and narrow their search down to the information reflecting their specific interest. Alternatively, those who wish to access information regarding more general questions such as overall research, teaching or language provision with relation to countries and/or areas will also find the Database extremely useful.

For further information:
Area Studies Database of Expertise
Department of Sociology
Coupland II
University of Manchester M13 9PL
Tel: 0161 275 6784/2516
Fax: 0161 275 2462
Email:
Pandeli.Glavanis@man.ac.uk
Cynthia.Carter@man.ac.uk

The Area Studies Web Page will be available in 1998.

Laura Turney
Centre for the Study of Globalisation, Eurocentrism & Marginality (CGEM)
Department of Sociology
University of Manchester
Manchester M13 9PL UK
http://les.mcc.ac.uk/cgem/
Tel: 44 0161 275 7852
Fax: 44 0161 275 2462

Grants to Aid Graduate Attendance at BAAS Conferences

In recent years some universities hosting the BAAS annual conference have been in a position to offer significant subsidies to postgraduate members who attend. These have helped to boost the number of graduate students at recent conferences, a trend that has been widely and positively noticed. Sadly, not all universities are equally generous. In some years it will prove necessary to set stringent limits on how much anyone can receive and under what circumstances.

In others, as at Glasgow in 1999, we anticipate that a flat rate subsidy may be possible. In order to spread the subsidy more effectively at future conferences, we have to require graduate members of BAAS to provide the Conference organiser with some evidence (perhaps from a supervisor) that assistance has been sought from their own institution. You should, therefore, approach your supervisor, Head of Department, and Financial Office to investigate what possibilities may exist. BAAS will try to help as long as you have exhausted those possibilities.

We hope that in many years the Conference funding will allow flat rate subsidies. When it does not, BAAS is not in a position to offer more than limited assistance beyond the existing low rate of membership for postgraduates.

Mike Sewell

Exchange Programmes with American Universities

At the BAAS conference in Norwich, it was agreed that a session should be held at the 1999 BAAS conference in Glasgow, especially in the light of the introduction of tuition fees and the implications which this could have for exchange programmes. The session will be organised by Dr Peter Boyle, who has been involved for many years with exchange programmes of the University of Nottingham with a number of American universities. The session will be concerned with exchanges which are part of an American Studies degree – not a Junior Year Abroad – and other such exchange programmes of a more general nature.

Peter Boyle has drawn up a questionnaire which he would like to be filled in and sent to him by BAAS members who are involved in American Studies exchange programmes. At the session on exchanges at the Glasgow conference, Peter Boyle will present a summary of the findings from the responses to the questionnaire, and this will form the basis for a general discussion at the session. Questionnaire on Exchange Programmes 1) With which American universities does your university have an exchange programme? 2) For which period of time do your students go to an American university on an exchange programme (eg. a semester; a year)? 3) At which point in their degree do your students go to an American university on an exchange programme (eg. 1st semester of 2nd Year; a year between 2nd and 3rd Year)? 4) Do you exchange students on a one-for-one basis or on another arrangement? 5) Do your students exchange tuition fees? 6) Do your students exchange accommodation fees? 7) Do the grades attained by students at the American university which they attend count towards their degree? 8) If grades do count towards students’ degree, how do you translate American grades into British university marks? 9) Is a period of study at an American university a compulsory or optional part of your American Studies degree? 10) Do you feel that a period of study at an American university is a essential part of an American Studies degree which should be a required part of every American Studies degree? 11) What are the main benefits which you feel that your students gain from a period of study at an American university? 12) What are the main benefits which you feel that your students gain from a period of study at an American university? 13) Has the introduction of tuition fees led you to alter your exchange programme in any way? Please send your response to:
Dr Peter Boyle
Department of American and Canadian Studies
University of Nottingham
Nottingham NG7 2RD, or Email: peter.boyle@nottingham.ac.uk

The Conference Scene

Exeter Conference Report: Identifying America / American Identities

The School of English and American Studies at the University of Exeter hosted the annual BAAS Interdisciplinary One-Day Postgraduate conference on 6th December 1997, entitled ‘Identifying America / American Identities.’ BAAS gratefully provided a grant of £200 to support the conference, as well as helping to publicise the event in the early stages.

The conference was quite modestly attended, perhaps due to the relative geographical remoteness of our University. We also had to overcome several last minute problems of illness and cancellation. Despite all this, the conference was friendly and relaxed, and proved to be a useful and stimulating experience. The conference was organised around four panels.

The morning session was on ‘Nostalgia.’ Paul Grainge (University of Nottingham) spoke on ‘Time’s Past in the Present: Nostalgia and the Black and White Image’ followed by Maurice Bottomley (Manchester Metropolitan University) on ‘Back in the Day: Nostalgia and the New Classic Soul.’ Despite the differing subject areas, the discussion afterwards raised some interesting points about the American desire for nostalgia. The session was followed by an announcement from Anna Notaro (University of Nottingham) on the forthcoming HRB funded ‘Three Cities’ project, which is being run jointly by the Universities of Birmingham and Nottingham.

After lunch, the conference split into two concurrent panels. The ‘Ethnicity’ session heard papers by Eric Kaufmann (London School of Economics) on ‘From Anglo-Saxon to Avant-Garde: Modernism and White American Identity Since 1913’, Richard Crownshaw (University of Sussex) on ‘The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum: Jewish-American Identities and the Nationalisation of Holocaust Memory’ and David Kennedy (University of Exeter) on ‘Martin Scorsese – Italian-American?’ The discussion period found useful common ground between the three papers, and was informative in its considerations of what ethnicity might mean in contemporary American society. Next door, the session was called ‘Looking Outside/Looking Inside.’ Saer Maty Ba (University of Exeter) spoke on ‘Religion and Struggle Against Racism: the case of Malcolm X and the Nation of Islam’ and Sue Wragg (University of Nottingham) spoke on ‘A Modernist Identity?: The U.S. and French Modernity.’ Thanks are especially due here to Candida Taylor (University of Birmingham), who stepped into the breach caused by one of the last minute cancellations and presented her paper on Zoot suits and 1950’s Chicano fashion and style. The discussion afterwards found shared thematic concepts between the papers while remaining sensitive to the specific differences between them. Next the delegates were given a tour of the Bill Douglas Centre, the University of Exeter’s new museum and research facility. Collected by the late Scottish filmmaker Bill Douglas and gratefully donated by his friend Peter Jewell, the collection consists of over 15,000 books and over 30,000 artifacts relating to cinema and popular culture.

The final session of the day was on ‘Women Writing.’ Ann Hurford (Nottingham Trent University) spoke on ‘Speaking out and Soap Opera: Anne Tyler’s Interrogation of Language in A Slipping-Down Life‘ and Hilary Dixon (Independent) on ‘Margaret Fuller: Identity Work.’ One of the conference casualties, Sophia Taylor (University of Nottingham), who had injured her back a few days before the event, arranged to have her paper on ‘Ellen Glasgow’s Spiritual Identity: Skeptic or Believer?’ read by her colleague Helen Oakley. Despite the chronological differences between the writers addressed, the discussion session again found useful links between the papers. The conference as a whole was a good advert for both the quality and diversity of work being done in American Studies at the postgraduate level and all of the papers provoked stimulating and interesting discussions. Paul Giles from the editorial board of OVERhere invited all the contributors to send their papers in to be considered for publication, and it is hoped that a selection of them will appear. We would like to thank Jo Whitmore, the postgraduate secretary in the School, for her help in all aspects of organising the conference, as well as Ph.D. student Fan Austin for her help on the day. Finally we thank BAAS and OVERhere again for their support.

David Kennedy and Richard Bradbury

Annual Conference of the Irish Association for American Studies: Alan Graham Memorial Lecture

On March 27, 1998, Douglas Tallack (University of Nottingham) gave the Alan Graham Memorial Lecture to open the annual conference of the Irish Association for American Studies in Dublin. His lecture, on the subject of ‘Just Waiting: The Hotel Lobby’, was delivered in the official residence of the American ambassador to Ireland, Jean Kennedy Smith, who was in the audience. Jean Kennedy Smith is a sister of the late President John F Kennedy.

Martin Luther King Memorial Conference

Between 8-10 May 1998, the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Conference was held at Newcastle University, expertly co-ordinated by Dr. Brian Ward of the History Department and various indispensable (and tireless!) helpers. The Conference theme this year was, ‘Media and Culture, Race and Resistance in the Civil Rights and Black Power Movements’. It drew together an invigorating range of distinguished Americanists from both sides of the Atlantic (as well as many postgraduates, lured by the generous student discounts!). The academic sessions were dynamic and stimulating, involving a lively variety of papers and discussions drawn from a range of disciplines within American Studies. The great public attractions included the NAACP’s chairman, Julian Bond’s lecture on ‘The Media and the Movement’ and, the pinnacle of the conference, ‘An Audience with Harry Belafonte’: the renowned African American artist, entertainer and humanitarian. This was followed by the much enjoyed ‘Harry Belafonte Celebration Dinner’ at which exclusive footage, filming Martin Luther King receiving his honorary degree from Newcastle in 1967, was shown. This provided a moving tribute to the thematic and political underpinnings of the King Conference as a whole. It is hoped that, in due course, another publication will emerge (in addition to the published collection of essays from the last King Conference), edited by Brian Ward, which will extend the intellectual benefits of this really excellent event to a wider audience.

Celeste-Marie Bernier

Urban Space and Representation Conference, Arts Centre, University of Nottingham 16 May 1998

This one-day interdisciplinary conference was the first to be organised in the context of the six year research project: ‘Literary and Visual Representations of Three American Cities (New York, Chicago, Los Angeles) 1870s-1930s’. This is a collaborative project initiated by the Department of American & Canadian Studies at the Universities of Nottingham and Birmingham. A successful joint application to the HRB/Funding Councils’ Institutional Fellowships Scheme has permitted the appointment of two Research Fellows, Dr Anna Notaro in Nottingham and Ms Maria Balshaw in Birmingham. The overall project director is Professor Douglas Tallack at Nottingham and Dr Liam Kennedy directs research at Birmingham.

About 40 participants attended the event which ran from 10:15am until 5:30 despite the lovely weather and, most importantly, the concomitant FA Cup Final! After registration Douglas Tallack welcomed the participants and introduced Anna Notaro, the conference organiser, who presented the research project’s Web Site and some of the design issues addressed in setting up the Site. Douglas Tallack also chaired the first session which included two papers: the first by David Nye (Odense), on ‘The Technological Sublime in the American City 1870-1931’, and the second by Eric Sandeen (Wyoming), on ‘Signs of the Times: Preparing for the Millennium in Times Square’. Both papers were nicely presented and richly illustrated by several slides. The papers were followed by a thirty minutes discussion which raised some very interesting issues. After lunch, particularly appreciated by all the participants, Maria Balshaw chaired the second session which included a presentation by Rachel Bowlby (Oxford), entitled ‘The Last Shopper’, and one by Peter Brooker (Nene), on ‘A Novelist in the Era of Higher Capitalism: Iain Sinclair and the Postmodern East End’. After the discussion and the coffee break Anna Notaro chaired the last of the conference sessions which saw papers by Iain Borden (UCL) on ‘A Performative Critique of the American City: The Urban Practice of Skateboarding and Liam Kennedy (Birmingham) on ‘Paranoid Spatiality: Postmodern Urbanism and American Film’. Liam Kennedy replaced Sallie Westwood, who had originally featured in the programme, but could not attend the conference due to illness. The conference ran smoothly to its conclusion. Anna Notaro thanked all the speakers for their richly layered with meaning presentations and announced the second of the Three Cities Project Conference to be held in Birmingham in April/May 1999. All the papers presented at the Urban Space and Representation Conference will be placed on the Three Cities project’s Web Site together with abstracts from the discussion, to this purpose the whole conference has been audio-recorded. In the light of the responses received on the Web, the original presenters will then be invited to rewrite their papers and to submit them for publication in a volume entitled Urban Theory and Practice, Anna Notaro (ed.), Pluto Press.

Anna Notaro

Colloquium/workshop: Jazz Contexts

The University of Nottingham’s Departments of American & Canadian Studies and Music are co-hosting a one-day colloquium/workshop on Jazz Contexts: The Music and Its Role in American Culture on Saturday 6 June 1998, 10:30am-5:30pm. There will also be a panel-led discussion on Jazz and American Studies to look at ways of including jazz within an American Studies curriculum. For further details and registration forms, please contact:

Dr Graham Taylor
Department of American & Canadian Studies
University of Nottingham
University Park
Nottingham NG7 2RD
Tel: 0115 951 4846
Email: graham.taylor@nottingham.ac.uk
OR check the departmental website JAZZ CONTEXTS pages at www.nottingham.ac.uk/~aazwww/jazz

Conference: New Orleans in Europe, University of Warwick, 4-5 July 1998

New Orleans is one of the world’s most celebrated and mythified, albeit under-researched cities. The birthplace of jazz and the South’s oldest and most cosmopolitan city, it has long been a mecca for all kinds of creative artists engaged in many forms of cultural production. It has also enjoyed longstanding links with Europe, engaging in reciprocal exchanges with European countries and artists.

This conference will bring together New Orleans scholars and enthusiasts from Europe and the United States, to share current research and ideas about the city and to expand those circum-Atlantic dialogues in which the city’s artists and intellectuals have always engaged. Interdisciplinary perspectives will be brought to bear on crescent City history, music, literature, film, festivals and photography.

Speakers include: Emily Togh (on Kate Chopin), Paul Gilroy and Violet Harrington Bryan (on voodoo), Paul Olicvver and Michel Fabre (the origins of New Orleans music), Berndt Ostendorf (jazz funerals), Diane Roberts (Mardi Gras), as well as Tony Badger, Janet Beer, Ralph Willett, Richard Ings and Stephen F Mills. Lillian Boutte, New Orleans’ internationally famous ‘Musical Ambassador’, singer of gospel, blues and jazz, will perform on Saturday night and attend the whole conference. Further details:

Marian Franklin/Helen Taylor
HRC
Room H452
University of Warwick
Coventry CV4 7AL
Tel: 01203 523401
Fax: 01203 524750
Email: HRC@warwick.ac.uk

Call for Papers: The American Politics Group 25th Annual Conference

The American Politics Group is pleased to announce that its 25th Annual Conference will take place at Selwyn College, Cambridge, from Wednesday 6th January to Friday 8th January 1999. Papers are invited on any aspect of American politics. If you wish to offer a paper, or just to be added to the mailing list to be kept informed about the conference, please contact the conference convenor:

Philip Davies
American Studies
School of Humanities
De Montfort University
Leicester LE1 9BH
England
Tel:+44 [0] 116 257 7398
Fax:+44 [0] 116 257 7199
Email:pjd@dmu.ac.uk

Fourth Middelburg Conference of European Historians of the United States

On 21-23 April 1999 the Roosevelt Study Center in Middelburg, the Netherlands, will host for the fourth time a biennial conference of European historians of the United States. The theme for the Middelburg IV Conference is ‘Federalism, Citizenship and Collective Identities in U.S. History.’ Historians interested in presenting a paper at this conference are invited to send a one-page proposal before 1 November 1998 to:

Dr. Cornelis A. van Minnen
Roosevelt Study Center
P.O.Box 6001 4330 LA Middelburg
The Netherlands
F ax: (31)118-631593 e-mail: c.vanminnen@rsc.knaw.nl

A selection of papers presented at previous Middelburg conferences have been published in the series European Papers in American History of Keele University Press. To be acceptable for publication, conference papers should be between twenty and thirty pages double spaced, written according to the Chicago Manual of Style, submitted on disk (Word for Windows 95, version 7.0). The oral presentation at the conference should not exceed twenty minutes.

Scholars interested in attending the conference are requested to contact to Roosevelt Study Center. Registration forms will be available from 1 November on. The conference organizers (Dr. Cornelis A. van Minnen and Professor Sylvia L. Hilton, Complutense University, Madrid) will raise funds to cover the hotel expenses of the speakers. Other participants are expected to cover their own expenses.

Callum MacDonald Commemorative Conference

‘Global Horizons: U.S. Foreign Policy After World War Two’
Saturday 23 May 1998 School of Comparative American Studies and Department of History University of Warwick MBA Centre
Whether conceived of as watershed or rite of passage, World War Two has had a significant and lasting impact on American foreign policy. It saw the rise of the United States to military superpower status and an enduring global projection of that power. It prompted a revision of strategic thought which would shape the contours of the Cold War for decades. It heralded an unprecedented expansion of American commercial and financial power, and anticipated an extension of US diplomatic interests and commitments across every continent. In these and many other ways, World War Two saw American foreign policy obtaining truly global horizons.

This conference, which celebrates the work of the late Professor Callum MacDonald of the University of Warwick, assesses some of the most significant aspects of wartime and postwar US foreign policy in the light of contemporary scholarship. Bringing together leading authorities from the United States and Britain, it focuses on selected military and diplomatic dimensions of both World War and Cold War across the full range of those global horizons: from Europe via Asia to Latin America.

Speakers will offer reevaluations of and new perspectives on the Cold War’s military flash points, from Korea to Cuba; on the relationship between World War and Cold War; and on the machinery – diplomatic, ideological and literal – of both. Together they will throw new light on the long shadow of war on post-war US foreign policy. Program 9:00 – 9:30 Registration 9:30 – 10:00 Professor Warren Kimball (Rutgers University), ‘The Second World War: NOT the Origins of the Cold War’ 10:00 – 10:30 Professor Lloyd Gardner (Rutgers University), ‘Technological Escapism: Ending the War with a Bang’ 10:30 – 11:00 Discussion 11:00 – 11:30 Coffee 11:30 – 12:00 Dr. Scott Lucas (Birmingham University) ‘Ideology and the Cold War’ 12:00 – 12:30 Dr. Richard Crockatt (University of East Anglia), ‘Arnold Toynbee, the United States and the Cold War’ 12:30 – 13:00 Discussion 13:00 – 14:00 Lunch 14:00 – 14:30 Professor Bruce Cumings (University of Chicago), ‘War Crimes and Historical Memory: The United Nations Occupation of North Korea in 1950’ 14:30 – 15:00 Dr. Peter Lowe (Manchester University), ‘The Impact of the Korean War on Anglo-American Relations’ 15:00 – 15:30 Discussion 15:30 – 16:00 Tea 16:00 – 16:30 Dr. Nicola Miller (University College London), ‘Reassessing the Cuban Missile Crisis: the Post-Cold War Historiography’ 16:30 – 17:00 Discussion 17:00 – 18:00 Panel Discussion Registration Fee (includes coffee, lunch, tea, reception): stlg30 (postgraduates stlg15) For further details and a registration form, please contact:

The Secretary
School of Comparative American Studies
University of Warwick
Coventry
West Midlands CV4 7AL.
Tel: [01203] 522502
Fax: [01203] 523437
Email: V.Melling@warwick.ac.uk

Walt Whitman Weekend

29-31 May 1998
Friday 29 May Exhibition of Walt Whitman books and momentos in the Archives Searchroom, Bolton Central Library, 5:30-7:15 p.m. Whitman lectures and readings Speakers: Dr. Paul Salveson, Dr. Carolyn Masel and Dr. Robert DiNapoli, Central Library Lecture Theatre, 7:30 p.m. Saturday 30 May Whitman Birthday Walk Meet at Barrow Bridge bus terminus, 2 p.m. Sunday 31 May Service of dedication, music and poetry. Unveiling of plaque and reception at Rivington Chapel, 3 p.m. Further details from J.A. Dagnall, tel. 691833.

Tyranny and Liberty: Big Government and the Individual in Toqueville’s Analysis of Modern Democracy

The Stevenson Room, The British Council, 9 rue de Constantine, Paris Information from Anna Brooke, Programme Officer, Institute of United States Studies, Senate House, Malet Street, London WC1E 7HU, e-mail abrooke@sas.ac.uk

Call for Papers: International Edgar Allan Poe Conference

Richmond, VA. 7-10 October 1999 Abstracts for papers and proposals for sessions are invited for the International Edgar Allan Poe Conference, commemorating the sequicentennial of Poe’s death. The event, to be held at the Jefferson Hotel in Richmond, Virginia, is sponsored by the Poe Studies Association, in conjunction with the Poe Foundation. All topics related to the life and works of Edgar Allan Poe are appropriate. Please send abstracts for twenty-minute papers (and proposals for hour-and-twenty minute sessions) to Richard Kopley, Vice-President of the PSA, Department of English, Penn State, University Park, PA 16802. The deadline for all submissions is 31 December 1998.

Kudos

As we go to print, congratulations to Philip Davies, BAAS President, (DeMontfort University), and to Jay Kleinberg (Brunel University) Chair of the BAAS Publications Sub-Committee, who have been appointed to personal chairs at their respective institutions. Well done!

Simon Newman, Director of American Studies at the University of Glasgow, has received a Resident Fellowship for study at the Rockefeller Foundation’s Centre at the Villa Serbelloni in Bellagio.

John David Smith, Graduate Alumni Distinguished Professor of History at North Carolina State University, has been appointed Fulbright Professor of American Studies at the Ludwig-Maximilians Universitat, Munich, for 1998-1999. He can be reached at smith_jd@unity.ncsu.edu or c/o Amerika-Institut, Universitat Munchen, Schellingstr. 3, 80799, Munich, Germany. Phone: 49-89-2180-2137.

In Print: Members’ Publications

William Blazek (Liverpool Hope) has published ‘Artistry and Primitivism in The Enormous Room’ in New Perspectives on the Literature of the Great War, ed. Patrick Quinn and Steven Trout (London: Macmillan, 1998).

Michael Glenday and William Blazek (Liverpool Hope) have published
American Mythologies at the Turn of the Century: New Essays on Contemporary Literature (Liverpool University Press, 1999).

Will Kaufman of the Cultural Studies Department at the University of Central Lancashire has recently published The Comedian as Confidence Man: Studies in Irony Fatigue (Wayne State University Press, 1997, ISBN 0 8143 2657 9 hardback). The book has been nominated for the Eugene M. Kayden Press Award and the Morris D. Forkosch Prize for the Journal of the History of Ideas.

Forthcoming from Sheffield Academic Press is George McKay’s Yankee Go Home (& Take Me with U): Americanization and Popular Culture. The publication of this collection of essays by scholars from Britain, France, the Netherlands, and Bulgaria on the process of Americanization was aided by a subvention from the European Association for American Studies.

‘Claiming, Corrupting, Contesting: Reconsidering ‘The West’ in Western American Literature’, an article by Martin Padget (University of Wales/Aberystwyth) will be published in the May 1998 issue of American Literary History.

Niall Palmer, Lecturer in American Studies at Brunel University, travelled recently to Concord, New Hampshire, to address the New Hampshire Historical Association at the State Historical Archive. The speech marked the publication of Palmer’s book, The New Hampshire Primary and the American Electoral Process (Praeger. Connecticut, 1997. ISBN: 0-275-95569-9). Present at the launch were the Democratic State Governor, Jeanne Shaheen, former Governor and Reagan/Bush campaign manager Hugh Gregg and New Hampshire Secretary of State, William M. Gardner. Governor Gregg received a copy of the book on behalf of the Historical Society.

The Civil Rights Movement: Struggle and Resistance, by William Riches, Senior Lecturer in History and American Studies at the University of Ulster/Jordantown, has just been published by Macmillan in the UK and St. Martin’s Press in the United States. It is available in hardback and paperback.

The Icon Critical Guide to Herman Melville, (Cambridge: Icon, 1998) edited by Nick Selby, has just been published.

Kevin White (Sussex) has published ‘The New Man and Early Twentieth-Century Emotional Culture’ in Peter Stearns and Jan Lewis, eds., An Emotional History of the United States (New York and London: New York University Press, 1998).

BAAS Essay Prize

The winner of the 1998 BAAS Essay Prize of £100 is Paul Grainge, University of Nottingham, for an essay titled ‘Time’s Past in the Present: Nostalgia and the Black and White Image.’ Congratulations!

BAAS – Short Term Travel Grants 1998/99

BAAS is happy to announce assistance for short-term visits to the USA during the academic year 1998-9 to scholars in the UK who need to travel to conduct research, or who have been invited to read papers at conferences on American Studies topics. It is intended that the grants be awarded for the study of subjects where the principal aim is the study of American history, politics, society, literature, art, culture, etc. and not of subjects with other aims, the data or materials for which happen to be located in the United States.

The resources available are relatively modest. It is envisaged that grants will be supplemented by, or will supplement, funds from other sources. The maximum for each grant will be £400.

Among qualified applicants, preference will be given to those who have had no previous opportunities for research-related visits to the USA and to young scholars including postgraduate students needing to visit the United States for research purposes.

Applications are invited from UK citizens, from persons normally resident in the UK, and from scholars currently working at, or registered as postgraduate students at UK universities and institutions of higher education.

Although it is recognised that awards under this scheme may need to be supplemented it is not intended that they should be used to supplement or extend long-term awards.

Application forms can be obtained from Jenel Virden (BAAS Secretary), American Studies Department, University of Hull, Hull HU6 7RX; see also pp 50-51 of this Newsletter. Four copies of the application must be returned to the same address by 30 September 1998.

It is hoped to notify successful applications by 2 December 1998. Please enclose a stamped addressed envelope if you wish to be notified in the case of your being unsuccessful.

Research Award Reports

Report – Nahfiza Ahmed

John D. Lees Travel Award Report – Nahfiza Ahmed, Department of Economic and Social History, University of Leicester

Having approached the final year of my Ph. D. research focusing on the civil rights movement in Mobile, Alabama c. 1925-1985, I found myself in the difficult position of having to finance one final trip to the city of Philadelphia which was vital to the completion of the thesis. Thanks to the generosity of Mrs. Moira Lees and various donors who contributed to the 1997 John D. Lees Award, I was able to make a visit to one of America’s most historic cities where the Declaration of Independence was signed. This in itself was an exciting opportunity but it was the work of the American Friends Service Committee, (AFSC), the community outreach branch of the Quakers in Mobile County between 1969 and 1973 that initially brought me to Philadelphia. First-hand accounts of the racial situation in this Alabama locality during the post-civil rights era has proved extremely difficult to obtain, particularly since the Federal Bureau of Investigation has seized the records of the only Black Power movement to emerge in South Alabama since King and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference staged the hugely successful demonstrations at Selma, Birmingham and Montgomery. The Neighbourhood Organisation workers, (NOW), was formed in Mobile in response to the assassination of King in 1968. Primarily a grass-roots movement, NOW rejected mainstream accommodationist politics in favour of local black representation. The work of two AFSC agents, Bill Rosser and David Jacobs, appointed to aid the orderly integration of Mobile County schools in this period, provides the only primary accounts of the nature and form of the Black Power movement in the county.

It was planned to interview Rosser and Jacobs, but due to the fact that they had already supplied oral history transcripts to the Southern Historical Collection at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, and did not live in Philadelphia, I made a last-minute journey to that archive so I could look at them. Whilst in North Carolina, I was able to conduct telephone interviews with former members of NOW. The group’s ex-president, Noble Beasley, has been in prison since 1971 on drug trafficking charges and so it was not possible to interview him. I was, however, successful in talking to NOW’s former treasurer, Frederick Richardson, who is currently serving on the Mobile city commission.

The transcripts at Chapel Hill and my own interviews shed interesting light on a period of Mobile’s racial history that has almost been forgotten. Civil rights scholars are now paying more attention to this important phase in the history of the American race relations. With the victories of the 1964 Civil Rights Act and the 1965 Voting Rights Act, the black struggle for equality reached a successful legal conclusion. The emergence of Black Power movements in the nation’s localities proved yet again that race continued to create social and economic divisions among African Americans themselves and within the community at large. However, in Mobile, it was the established black middle-class leadership which financed and successfully concluded a legal suit charging that the city’s commission form of government deliberately diluted black voting power by electing commissioners at large. ON account of this, Mobile reverted to mayor system and now elects its legislators via votes drawn from the individual wards. It is likely though that NOE’s militant presence, by attracting the attention of the AFSC and the Mobile white establishment, helped bring black political representation to the city in the 1980s. It is hoped that the final chapter of my case study of Mobile will provide the basis for a paper to be delivered at the next BAAS annual conference in Glasgow.

Report – Neil Allsop

An Account of Neil Allsop’s BAAS Sponsored Research Trip to The United States of America, 8/1/98-9/2/98

My arrival in the United States was delayed because of the inclement weather at JFK airport. After an unscheduled stop at Newark International, ‘we’ finally landed at JFK after 12 hours on the plane. Fortunately, after a tiring and frustrating start, the remainder of my trip went relatively smoothly.

After a weekend stay with friends on Long Island, I made my way to Albany, N.Y., on the Monday morning. Fearing the worst, after reports of massive icestorms in upstate New York, I was very surprised to find that Albany had missed a storm that had left most of the ‘North Country’ without power.

The first two weeks of research were spent almost entirely in the New York State Library. During the first week, I worked through the library’s collection of Temporary Emergency Relief Administration (TERA) documents, in an attempt to find material that I did not already have. My search provided me with only one new document. My search for documents pertaining to New York’s Public Welfare Law of 1929 and the federal Social Security Act proved to be more fruitful. The latter research, along with brief trips to SUNY Albany’s Dewey Graduate Library, accounted for the remainder of the first week.

During the second week, I consulted the resources pertaining to the Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FERA), the Works Progress Administration (WPA), the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), and the Civil Works Administration (CWA). The FERA and WPA collections were of most importance to my study, and provided me with a substantial amount of information for chapter 5 of my thesis. My research of FERA and WPA also took me into the collections of the New York State Archives.

The third week of my visit began as the second week had ended, in the archives. I finished off my research of the WPA, and its work in New York State, before scouring Governor Herbert H. Lehmen’s Governorship files for any detailed information about TERA in the years 1935-37. What little I found should be adequate to supplement the reports of TERA that I already have.

My next port of call was the New York State Department of Labor Library. Although the library is in the process of moving, the librarian was more than helpful in my search for several reports, dating back to the 1930’s, that I needed. The rest of week 3 was spent at the Dewey Graduate Library and SUNY Albany’s main Library, working with the WPA Research Monographs and local newspaper collections.

Week 4 was spent finishing my research in the SUNY libraries and tying up loose ends.

My research trip proved to be very fruitful. I completed all of the research I had intended to do, and even had time to do some writing. I would like to thank BAAS for awarding me the short-term award that allowed me to complete my research.

Report – Darren Mulloy

Report of the research visit by Darren Mulloy to the University of Kansas, Lawrence, between the 8th and 25th of March 1998, for his research project on the Militia Movement

There is a saying in the mid-west that if you don’t like the weather just hang around a few minutes. I can confirm the truth of this particular folk wisdom. My arrival in Lawrence was delayed a day due to a severe snow storm which had closed Kansas City airport, within days I was suffering the effects of sunburn, and then I was almost washed away in the torrential rains which followed. However, with the weather as one of the major topics of discussion I was able to enter conversations with ease. A lifetime spent in the British Isles had not been wasted. I had less success with the other main subject area: the University of Kansas basketball team, the Jayhawks. I had arrived, it seemed, during ‘March Madness,’ this being the finals of the college basketball season. The Jayhawks were one of the favourites for the title and the campus was in a state of barely suppressed frenzy. The demolition of their first round opponents hardly made for a restful night in the Halls of Residence where I was staying and I feared the worst for the fortnight ahead. Fortunately, for me, if not the Jayhawkers, they then crashed out of the competition to Rhode Island. So with the campus undertaking some collective soul searching I was able to get on with my research in relative peace.

The Wilcox Collection of Contemporary Political Movements is housed in the Kenneth Spencer Research Library as part of the Kansas Collection. It was established by Laird Wilcox in 1965 and has grown to become one of the largest collections of ‘extremist’ political literature in the U.S. containing ‘more than 10,000 books, pamphlets and periodicals, 800 audio tapes, 73 linear feet of manuscript materials and nearly 85,000 pieces of ephemera, including flyers, brochures, and clippings.’ Fortunately, Becky Schulte, the assistant curator, and Lin Fredericksen, one of the library assistants, had prepared an initial list of militia and patriot movement texts with which I could begin to thread my way through this mass of material and I was soon making my acquaintance with the photocopying machine.

As I had hoped the Collection contained a huge amount of material which was unobtainable to me in the UK. To give some indication, there were newsletters and flyers from the Militia of California, the Florida State Militia, the Kentucky Rifleman Militia, the Militia of Montana, the Michigan Militia, the Vermont Free Militia, the White Mountain Militia, the Kansas Second Amendment Militia, and the American Justice Federation. There were publications such as The Freedom Networker, The Independent Newsletter, Patriot Report, The Anti-Shyster, and the Aid-and-Abet Newsletter. There were catalogues for videos and books from The Secret Information Network and American Viewpoint Monthly, together with first editions of some of those books including The Turner Diaries and Behold a Pale Horse.

The wider Patriot Movement is very well represented in the Collection as are survivalist and gun rights groups including Gun Owners of America and the Citizen’s Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms. I was able to consult issues of Directions, The Preparedness Journal, The American’s Bulletin, The McAlvanay Intelligence Report, Gary Allen Communications, On Target, Patriots Information Network, and Spotlight. I also took advantage of the Collection’s resources to examine more historical material from various groups including the Posse Comitatus, The Covenant, The Sword and the Arm of the Lord, the Christian Patriots Defense League, the Minutemen, the Black Panthers, the Populist Party and William Pelley’s Silver Shirts to provide useful background material for my research.

The Spencer Research library is a non-circulation library by which one has to call for material from the stacks, and as the staff are still in the process of transferring the card catalogue to computer files, I was advised to use both systems to obtain the call numbers I required. I am grateful for the patience of all the staff in retrieving the documents I requested, including, occasionally, pulling huge piles of periodicals or newsletters only for me to decide that a promising sounding title was in fact not what I was looking for. This, though, was the exception. On the whole the material of the various groups and individuals whom I wished to examine were easy to locate, while serendipity also led me to some useful material which I wouldn’t have necessarily thought of to consider such as the Alaska Free Press. My thanks to Bryan Culip, Deborah Dandridge, Kristin Eshelman, Jennifer Evensen, Lin Fredericksen, Mary Hawkins, Nancy Hollingsworth, and Becky Schulte both for all their help with my research and for making my two weeks in the Collection such an enjoyable experience.

In addition to this primary material I was also able to make use of some of the other facilities on campus for important secondary material. These included the reports of congressional investigations into the Militia Movement held in the Government Documents Library and several academic texts in the Watson Library which are difficult to obtain in Britain.

My research, however, was not confined to the University of Kansas and with the aid of a hired car I was able to explore the flat expanse of Kansas and Missouri. I had three meetings with the Wilcox Collection’s founder, Laird Wilcox, one of the leading experts on extremist groups in America. As well as being supportive of my own work and extremely generous with his time and ideas, Mr Wilcox provided me with further material on the Militias which had not yet made the journey from his home to the University, including some of his own work in progress. He also shared with me some entertaining stories from his 35 years studying the political fringe. It was great to make contact with such an expert in the field and I look forward to our future exchanges.

I concluded my trip by spending an afternoon with eight members of the Kansas City based Missouri 51st Militia. This included a three hour taped interview. I am grateful to Kay for making her home available for the day and to Jim, Mike, Rick, Jim, Bill, Joanne, and Jackie for agreeing to talk to me. They made no restrictions on what I wished to discuss and were very forthcoming in explaining their views. It was a productive meeting and did much to enhance my understanding of the Militia Movement. I also have an offer to be taken target shooting on my next visit which I can hopefully take up sometime in the future.

The trip was absolutely invaluable for my research both in terms of the amount of primary and secondary material – six large folders full – which I was able to gather in a little over two weeks, and which I am now in the process of sorting through, but also in furthering my own understanding of the Militia Movement, the people involved in it, and its relationship with other ‘radical’ political movements in American history. My time in the Wilcox Collection demonstrated to me the diversity and sheer number of groups which exist on the ‘radical right’, but it also illuminated the similarity and historical persistence of many of their concerns. I can recommend the Wilcox Collection and Lawrence itself not only to students of the ‘radical right,’ but also to those of the ‘radical left.’ My thesis would be much the poorer without this trip and I am extremely grateful to the Association for giving me the opportunity to undertake it, and to the Gilchrist Educational Trust, the Arthur Miller Centre and the Graduate Studies Committee at UEA for making it possible.

New Members

It is particularly gratifying to note the continuing rise in membership of BAAS, particularly among postgraduate students and among colleagues in other countries. The British Association of American Studies is pleased to welcome the following new members:

Neil Colin Allsop is currently enrolled in the University of Sheffield’s American History Ph.D. program. The subject of his Ph.D. thesis is the development of unemployment relief in upstate New York during the Great Depression.

Christopher Bates is Head of Politics at Kimbolton School, where he teaches A Level Politics (US and Comparative) as well as GCSE and A Level History. He is currently planning to write a textbook on the U. S. Supreme Court for A-level students, and would like to establish contacts in the US with academics researching the Supreme Court. His e-mail is 100712.3363@compuserve.com.

John Beck is Adrian Research Fellow at Darwin College, Cambridge. His Ph.D. was on William Carlos Williams and John Dewey. He is now researching Left Modernism, American deserts, text and terrain, and Buckminster Fuller. His other subject interests include contemporary art and photography, American philosophy, and post-1945 poetry and fiction.

Celeste-Marie Bernier is a postgraduate student in the area of African-American women’s literature at Newcastle University. Her Ph.D. will focus on Gloria Naylor, Zora Neale Hurston and Octavia E. Butler.

Scott L. Bills is Professor of History at Stephen F. Austin State University in Nagadoches, Texas, where he has taught courses on Global Democracy, the Civil Rights Movement, and Modern East Asia. He was Co-Executive Editor of Peace and Change, 1994-1997, and has published extensively on American history, diplomacy and foreign policy.

Colin Brown is Head Teacher at Sandwich School, where he also teaches American/Comparative Politics. Janice Burrow is a postgraduate student in the Department of English Literary and Linguistic Studies at Newcastle University, working on slavery and the supernatural in twentieth-century North American literature. Her research is also concerned with the way in which history is represented in fictional works.

Ronald Bush is Drue Heinz Professor of American Literature at St. John’s College, Oxford. He has written and lectured extensively on diverse topics, ranging from T.S. Eliot and Ezra Pound to the negotiation of group identity. His books include The Genesis of Ezra Pound’s Cantos and T.S. Eliot: A Study in Character and Style.

Ian Chambers is preparing an M. A. at the University of Warwick on the consequences for Native Americans of English settlement on the Southern colonial frontier. He was a speaker at the 1998 Midlands BAAS post-graduate conference.

Michael Charles holds an M.A. from Oxford in Modern History and is a retired teacher. He devised an A-level syllabus on ‘Slavery and Secession’ for Shiplake College in London, and has extensive experience teaching sixth-form American History and Politics.

Jonathan Coleman is preparing his Ph. D. at the University of Liverpool on Anglo-American relations during the period 1964-1968. His primary interest is US foreign relations, though he is also interested in American literature.

Peter Cottrell is a retired accountant, and is currently enrolled in a B.A. degree course in American Studies at Nene College, Northampton.

Gail D. Danvers is preparing her D. Phil at the University of Sussex on colonial America, with particular emphasis on Iroquois relations with New York colonists. Her primary focus is on Sir William Johnson, superintendent of Indian Affairs, who functioned as an important mediating link between these cultures.

Thomas John Donnelly is currently studying for an M. A. in American Literature and Culture at the University of Leeds. His academic interests include Cultural Studies, Film, and Art History.

Brian Dunn is preparing an M. Phil on Paul Auster at University College, London. The title of his thesis is ‘Auster’s New York, America, and the Self.’

Richard Follett lectures in American History at the National University of Ireland, Galway. He received his Ph.D from Louisiana State University in 1997, with a dissertation on ‘The Sugar Masters: Slavery, Economic Development, and Modernization on Louisiana Sugar Plantations, 1820-1860.’ His research interests include slavery, the antebellum South, and nineteenth-century US economic history.

Lisa Ganoblsik-Williams is completing her Ph. D. thesis on Charlotte Perkins Gilman and social reform discourses at Miami University, though she lives in Britain at present. She has published articles and presented conference papers on Gilman and her work, as well as on slave narratives and abolitionist discourse.

Joanna Gill is a postgraduate student at Cheltenham and Gloucester College of Higher Education. She is currently working on the poetry of Anne Sexton.

Alex Goody has just received his doctorate from the University of Leeds, with a dissertation on the modernist poetry of Mina Loy. He is currently teaching at the University of Leeds, and is looking for an academic post.

Faye Hamill is in her final year as a Ph. D. student at the University of Birmingham. Her dissertation is on Canadian literature, and she is interested in further research in the area of comparative American-Canadian studies, possibly linking S. J. Duncan with her American contemporaries.

Eric Homburger is Reader in American Literature at the University of East Anglia. His most recent publications are The Historical Atlas of New York City (Henry Holt, 1994); Scenes from the Life of a City: Corruption and Conscience in Old New York (Yale UP, 1994) and The Penguin Historical Atlas of North America (1995). He is currently working on the aristocracy of New York City in the nineteenth century.

Cathy Hoult is a postgraduate student at Leicester University, where she is carrying out research on American women’s history at the end of the nineteenth century.

Louis J. Kern is Professor of History at Hofstra University, where he teaches courses in Cultural and Intellectual History, American Literature, Film Studies, and Popular Culture. Among his publications are An Ordered Love: Sex and Sexuality in Three Victorian Utopias – The Mormons, The Shakers, and the Oneida Community, and (as co-editor) Women in Communitarian Societies in the United States.

Andrew Lawson is Senior Lecturer in American Literary and Cultural Studies at Staffordshire University. He has published articles in Textual Practice, Contemporary Literature and the William Carlos Williams Review. His current research is on intersections of class and race in early American modernism.

Andrew Lee is an M. A. student at the University of Sheffield. His subject interests include cultural and political U. S. history since 1945, focusing on the Nixon years.

Ian David Margeson holds a M.A from Exeter University and is a Ph. D. student and part-time lecturer in American History at Cheltenham and Gloucester College of Higher Education. His current area of research is American Loyalist mentality during the revolutionary period, with particular attention to U.K. archival sources.

Alan John Martin is a postgraduate student at the Institute of United States Studies. His special interests include immigration, Native American history and literature, and Jack Kerouac.

Annette Matton is a postgraduate research student at Exeter University, where she is preparing a dissertation on representations of the Vietnam war in American comic books.

Simon Middleton lectures in American History at the University of East Anglia. He holds a Ph. D. from the City University of New York and an M.A. from Harvard University. His research interests have included free and skilled labor in seventeenth and eighteenth-century New York, urban trades in seventeenth-century New York, and cultural interpretations of the Industrial Revolution.

James Moore has been Executive Director of the US-UK Educational Commission (Fulbright Commission) since 1993. He received an M. A. from Trinity College, Cambridge, and has held posts in Norway, Thailand, Warsaw, Beirut, Ottawa, Manila and Copenhagen.

Kathryn Napier is a postgraduate student at the University of Glasgow, where she is preparing her M. Phil thesis on the work of Louise Erdrich. Her research interests include Native American literature, gender issues, and theory of ethnicity.

Joao Paulo Nunes received his B. A. and M. A. from the University of Coimbra. He is currently a postgraduate student at King’s College, London, where he is working on the poetry of William Carlos Williams.

Peter Opitz is a postgraduate student in the American Studies Department of the University of Hull, where he is working under the supervision of Professor John Ashworth.

Martin Padget lectures in American Studies at the University of Wales/Aberystwyth, where he also acts as Degree Scheme Coordinator. He holds a Ph. D. in American Literature from the University of California at San Diego, and is currently completing a book entitled ‘Indian Country’: Representing the Southwest, 1869-1937.

Josef Pesch studied English and Geography at Bonn, Coventry, St. Catherine’s College/Oxford, and Munster. His dissertation on Oscar Wilde and James Joyce, titled Wilde, about Joyce , was published in 1992. He has taught American and Canadian literature at the Saar University, Saarbrucken, and at Freiburg University. His work on Michael Ondaatje has been published in Zeitschrift fur Anglistik und Amerikanistik, Zeitschrift fur Kanada-Studien and Ariel. He is now writing a second book titled Deconstructing Apocalypse: Post-Apocalyptic Visions in North American Culture.

Luca Prono holds a B.A. from the University of Venice, and recently completed a M.A. thesis on literary and sociological representations of Chicago at the University of Nottingham. He is currently involved in research linked to the HRB-funded project on The Visual and Literary Culture of Three American Cities. His interests include theories of ethnicity, African-American literature, and intersections between literature and sociology.

Adam Roberts lectures in English at Royal Holloway, University of London. His interests include twentieth-century popular culture, postmodernism, science fiction and fantasy. He has published books on American contemporary Arthuriana and on science fiction.

Markku Ruotsila received his M. A. from the University of Tampere and is currently a Ph. D. student at St. John’s College, Cambridge. His current research is on early (1917-1921) development of anti-Bolshevik thought in the U.S.

A.B. Christa Schwarz holds a M. A. from Queen Mary and Westfield College, with a dissertation on the gay dimensions of the Harlem Renaissance. She is now enlarging on this project in her Ph. D. thesis with the American Studies Department of the University of Sussex

Stephen Shapiro is a Junior Lecturer at the University of Saarland in Saarbrukcn, Germany.

Barbara Shaw-Perry is a Ph. D. candidate at the University of Maryland/College Park. Her research areas include US Latina literature, Borderland studies, feminist theory, and Cultural Studies. She is also interested in issues related to gender, race, class and sexuality in film and other mediated cultural texts.

Daniel Short is a Ph. D. student at the School of English, Leeds University. He is currently researching the work of John Dos Passos alongside a study of photography.

Gemma Marie Slade is a postgraduate student at the Institute for United States Studies, with special interests in the areas of history, media studies, and politics.

Sophia Taylor is a postgraduate student in American Studies at Nottingham University.

Graham Thompson is a research student at Nottingham Trent University, where he is writing his Ph. D. on representations of the office in American fiction from the mid-nineteenth to the late twentieth century, with particular emphasis on scopic regimes and male sexuality.

Simon Topping is a graduate teaching assistant at the Department of American Studies, University of Hull, where he is carrying out research under the supervision of Professor John Ashworth.

Anne-Marie Trudgill is a research student at the Roehampton Institute, where she is working on the New England writer Elizabeth Barstow Stoddard.

Bertram Allan Weinert holds a Ph. D. in Social Welfare History, with a thesis on legislation and health insurance in the US, 1900-1920. He was Director of Consumer Education in the office of the New York State Attorney General from 1979 to 1993. He now lives in the South of France, and is currently researching the impact of transnational corporations on people in the United States and Europe.

Saranne Weller is preparing her Ph. D. thesis in English and Comparative Literature at the University of Warwick. She is currently researching the racism of Thomas Dixon and his relationship to turn-of-the-century black literature.

Karen Wilkinson is a research student at Manchester Metropolitan University in the department of American Studies at the Crewe and Alsager Faculty. Her current area of research is gender, religion and society in the novels of Susan Warner.

Juergen C. Wolter is Professor of American Studies at Wuppertal University, Germany. He has published three monographs as well as numerous articles, and lists among his current research interests contemporary American literature and the literature of the American South.

Nerys Owen Williams is a postgraduate student at the School of English and American Studies, University of Sussex, where she is preparing a D.Phil.

Barbara Wyllie is a Ph. D. student jointly at the School of Slavonic and East European Studies and University College London. Her Ph. D. thesis is titled ‘A Study of the Works of Vladimir Nabokov in the Context of Contemporary American Fiction and Film.’ She is also a freelance archival researcher into Holocaust issues, particularly Nazi loot.

Duco van Oostrum lectures in American Literature at the University of Sheffield. He holds a Ph. D. from Rice University, and has published a book titled Male Authors, Female Subjects: The Woman Within/Beyond the Borders of Henry Adams, Henry James, and Others (Amsterdam/Atlanta: Rodolpi, 1995), as well as articles on Henry Adams, Toni Morrison, Larry McMurtry, and others. His current research is on American Sports Narratives.

Reminder: Members are asked to notify Professor Janet Beer, BAAS Treasurer, in the event of a change of institutional or home address. Her contact data is as follows:

Professor Janet Beer

BAAS Treasurer
tel. 0161 247 6590
Department of English
Manchester Metropolitan University
Geoffrey Manton Building
Rosamond Street
West Manchester
M15 6LL
j.beer.mmu.ac.uk

BAAS Birmingham Update

William Riches of the University of Ulster/Jordantown has forwarded the following report on three papers given by participants from the University of Newcastle at the Birmingham BAAS conference: George Lewis (Newcastle): ‘Not So well Red: Black, White and Native Americans In and Out of the Historiography of the Civil Rights Movement’ Jenny Walker (Newcastle) ‘The Gun-Toting Gloria Richardson? Black Violence in the Nonviolent Civil Rights Era’ Stephen Walsh (Newcastle) ‘Bringing the Nitty-Gritty to the ‘Chocolate City’? Black-Oriented Radio and the Civil Rights Movement in Washington, D.C. 1948-1975′ After twenty years and more of government cuts to higher education there is good reason to fell despondent about the future of higher education. But then there are moments when the cynic feels that perhaps there is still hope. All the above papers demonstrated the exciting scholarship being undertaken by very talented individuals and makes one hope that the future of American Studies will be very good.

George Lewis correctly pointed out that the role of Native Americans in the civil rights movement has been sadly neglected. He cited the shortcomings in many of the standard works on the movement and his paper concentrated on the interaction between civil rights organisation and the Lumbee Indians of North Carolina. He carefully delineated the difficulties that Native Americans faced with the challenge of the movement, especially over the integration of schools which threatened their cultural identity. In the lively discussion that followed it was pointed out that there remains considerable doubt about the true origins of the Lumbees.

In one of the best papers that I heard during the conference, Jenny Walker explored the myth and reality surrounding Gloria Richardson, leader of the Maryland Cambridge Nonviolent Action Committee. when Richardson’s activities are considered by historians she is portrayed as an advocate of violence when she was in fact a middle-class, middle-aged black woman who was an advocate of nonviolent direct action. The gun-carrying stereotype is compounded by the women’s movement which has transformed her into a feminist icon. Portraits of Richardson as the armed revolutionary are based on white newspaper accounts which blamed blacks for violence, ignoring the role of whites. Paul Giddings, who has done so much to ensure that black women are treated as part of the movement, is rightly criticised for perpetuating the stereotype which leads to misunderstanding of the movement.

Stephen Walsh’s study concentrated on the role of the radio in the civil rights movement and it was stressed that, despite many short-comings, the medium played a positive role in the movement. He is careful to point out that the finding about radio stations in Washington as a case study cannot be extrapolated to the nation as a whole. The problems of white ownership are dealt with as is the decline of black owned stations, especially WHUR which has the support of Howard University. Commercial interests were always the foremost concern of radio stations – black or white owned – and it was these commercial interests which dictated the contributions they made to the movement. In a lively question and answer session that followed, all three speakers demonstrated their command of their topics and all present were agreed about the excellence of the session.

William Riches (University of Ulster at Jordanstown)

Irish Journal of American Studies – 6th vol.

A limited number of the sixth volume of the Irish Journal of American Studies is available. The articles in this issue are: Elaine Tyler May, ‘The Politics of Reproduction’ John Pearson, ”That the Stuff You Gotta Watch’: The Background to Rock and Roll’ Lee Jenkins, ‘A Pluralistic Universe: Rereading Wallace Stevens’ Harmonium’ Alan Bairner, ‘Sharon McClone’s San Francisco: The Role of the City in the Work of Marcia Muller’ Subarno Chatterji, ‘Vietnam Poetry’ Denis Flannery, ‘Brothers and Sisters: Sibling Loves in Paris Is Burning’

Limited numbers of Vols. 1-4 are also available, at a cost per issue of £5 (academics) £3 (graduates and undergraduates) and £15 (libraries).
Orders should be sent to Steve Ickringill, IAAS Treasurer, The University of Ulster, Coleraine, Co. Londonderry.”

7868How to do ‘more’ with ‘less’ and still maintain ‘quality’ is a conundrum of long-standing to those in private enterprise. It is a relatively new one, however, to confront Universities. In facing up to it, Universities have been compelled to manage their affairs in a much more self-conscious way than was previously considered necessary. It is this process – of change, and the management of this change – which was the focus of the Winston Churchill Travelling Fellowship undertaken by Dr Peter McCaffery, Dean of the School of European, International and Social Studies, Thames Valley University. A ’round-the-world’ Fellowship, indeed, in which he covered 37,000 miles visiting a cross-section of universities in the USA and Australia over the last two months. While each of the Universities were engaged in a common set of initiatives – the development of their own intranet; the provision of courses on the world-wide web; the professionalisation of management development and so on – Dr. McCaffery also found that they had established their own particular priorities. For: the devolution of financial power and responsibility to departments; the application of Ernest Boyer’s ‘scholarship’ framework to all aspects of university business; or the establishment of ‘teaching only’ appointments. Either way, what made the significant difference in successful implementation was the manner and extent to which University leaders had prepared their staff for change. The unanticipated personal experiences Dr.McCafferty encountered also lent a sharper edge to the professional aspect of his Fellowship. These included: an emergency landing in an ice-storm at St. John’s Newfoundland; flooding in Los Angeles (in the wake of El Nino); the longest heatwave in Brisbane since 1946 ….. intersecting with the White House sex scandal; the arrival of Oasis in Perth.

Winston Churchill Travelling Fellowship

How to do ‘more’ with ‘less’ and still maintain ‘quality’ is a conundrum of long-standing to those in private enterprise. It is a relatively new one, however, to confront Universities. In facing up to it, Universities have been compelled to manage their affairs in a much more self-conscious way than was previously considered necessary.

It is this process – of change, and the management of this change – which was the focus of the Winston Churchill Travelling Fellowship undertaken by Dr Peter McCaffery, Dean of the School of European, International and Social Studies, Thames Valley University. A ’round-the-world’ Fellowship, indeed, in which he covered 37,000 miles visiting a cross-section of universities in the USA and Australia over the last two months.

While each of the Universities were engaged in a common set of initiatives – the development of their own intranet; the provision of courses on the world-wide web; the professionalisation of management development and so on – Dr. McCaffery also found that they had established their own particular priorities. For: the devolution of financial power and responsibility to departments; the application of Ernest Boyer’s ‘scholarship’ framework to all aspects of university business; or the establishment of ‘teaching only’ appointments. Either way, what made the significant difference in successful implementation was the manner and extent to which University leaders had prepared their staff for change.

The unanticipated personal experiences Dr.McCafferty encountered also lent a sharper edge to the professional aspect of his Fellowship. These included: an emergency landing in an ice-storm at St. John’s Newfoundland; flooding in Los Angeles (in the wake of El Nino); the longest heatwave in Brisbane since 1946 ….. intersecting with the White House sex scandal; the arrival of Oasis in Perth.

Letters to the Editor

American Studies and the Year Abroad: Rebuttal to Mills

Universities are increasingly besieged, not only by funding cuts but also by a style of business management that prefers to equate the university to the corporation. Vice Chancellors describe themselves as executives of large corporations and demand, and get, inflated salaries and other perks (free luxury housing, expense accounts and cars) that they feel is commensurate with their status as heads of large corporations. In addition, the late business jargon of the late 1950s now dominates all discussion in the university. Students are no longer students, they are consumers. Education is no longer a term that is popular but rather academic staff are asked to package their courses into semester-long, easily digestible confections. But in the darkening gloom there are those of us who are prepared to fight for education, independent thought and to offer students challenges that they should face in the academic community. One of those educational opportunities and challenges provided for American Studies students at the University of Ulster at Jordanstown is the year abroad. And it is this intercalary year which Steve Mills questions in his OP-ED page in the Autumn issue of the BAAS Newsletter.

First a brief history of the American Studies programme at this University. A dedicated group of colleagues have spent twenty years planning this degree which started in 1984. at first we arranged an optional year abroad in a three-year degree, transferring credit from a few selected American universities and with the aid of the International Student Exchange Program (ISEP) based in Washington, D.C. and by placement agreements reached with universities, such as the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. In 1988 we had the opportunity to revise the degree and included a year abroad for all students who wished to graduate in American Studies.

Why? First, because the optional programme was fully funded by the students and their parents which meant that only the wealthy could benefit. With a large number of our students coming from poor or working class backgrounds self-funding was not an option. The benefits of study abroad we felt should be made available to far more students in future.

What are these benefits? By requiring students to study at accredited universities in the United States we enable them to study a far greater range of topics which are just not available in this university. For example, one student did constitutional law courses at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and after graduation did a law conversion course and is now a solicitor. Similarly another student at the University of Tennessee at Knoxville took courses in photo journalism and has had several commissions since graduation.

The additional year in the United States enables a student to mature when s/he faces the challenges of a different culture and academic system. Very few students are as fortunate as Steve Mills’s children (or mine for that matter) to have made frequent visits to the United States. To extrapolate from the personal experiences of my own children that a year abroad as part of an American Studies programme is irrelevant is almost syllogistic.

I have never approved of ‘study’ programmes which did not require students to study in the United States. At this university all students are required to take approved studies at university in the US. They are expected to undertake research for their third year honours project. One student while at Indiana State did social anthropological studies in African American urban myths and legends which would have been impossible without the year abroad. The credit earned by students is transferred based on an internationally agreed formula and accounts for 15% of their final mark.

The benefits of the intercalary year are seen in the performance of the students. Almost 70% of students graduating in American Studies from this university were awarded 2:1 or first class honours degrees. The assessors in the Teaching Quality Assessment, carried out in October 1996, stated in their final report:

Evidence of their performance indicates that students take the opportunities offered to study a wide and imaginative choice of course units at an appropriate level. The year abroad is a very successful part of the programme and makes a significant contribution to the achievement of aims and objectives. It is well integrated into the course structure and informs work in the final year, especially in relation to the dissertation.

The demands and experience of completing the intercalary year at a university in the USA contribute to broader personal development that enhances final year achievement, and expands the choice and opportunities of postgraduate placement.

And these views have been backed up by every external examiner and the numbers of our students who are undertaking graduate studies in the USA. But in today’s ‘educational’ climate is academic and teaching excellence of any value? It is noteworthy that a department can get extra funding and staff for excellence in research and get nothing as a result of an excellent TQA.

For those enamoured with the business world there are very special benefits for students who have participated in study abroad for a year. Having worked in business for several years there are standard questions for any new applicant. Are they willing to attempt new things and are they flexible in their approach to their work? A bonus for our graduates is that they can prove that they can adjust to a different culture and succeed. Any student who meets the challenges posed by adjusting to living in the United States and the difficulties in coming to terms with a new academic system has demonstrated not only their academic ability but also their maturity and flexibility.

All the staff at the University of Ulster at Jordanstown were delighted when the assessors stressed in their final report that: The intercalary year in America is a much valued experience and is central to the development of the students’ knowledge, understanding and skills. It is well integrated with the other elements of the curriculum.

For these, and many other reasons, the faculty teaching in the American Studies programme at this university will fight to the bitter end to keep the intercalary year as an essential part of the debate.

William Riches Senior Lecturer in History and American Studies University of Ulster at Jordantown

Out of date

Dear Dr. Castillo, The information which has been published about me in the current issue of the BAAS Newsletter is, due to my own fault, several years out of date. I finished my studies at Middlesex and earned my graduate research diploma in 1990. I am continuing my research interests but in another field of American Studies (also to do with the Cold War, but intellectual rather than diplomatic history). In 1991-92, I wrote a dissertation, as part of my M. A. in Library and Information Studies at Loughborough University, on ‘Encounter’, the Congress for Cultural Freedom, and their Connections with the New York Intellectuals. I am intending to expand this into a book or series of articles at some point. This can be confirmed by contacting Dr. Hugh Wilford, at Middlesex University, with whom I work quite closely.

Yours sincerely, Brandon High, B.A., M.A. (Lib)

To Err is Human

The Newsletter would like to make the following corrections to items appearing in the last issue, with apologies to those involved: The surname of Laura Turney, of the Centre for the Study of Globalisation, Eurocentrism and Marginality (CGEM), Manchester University, Manchester M13 9PL, was mistakenly indicated as Turner. Please note that her correct e-mail address is Laura.Turney@man.ac.uk

BAAS Executive Committee Meeting: April 16, 2009

Minutes of the 258th meeting of the Executive Committee, held at University of Nottingham on April 16, 2009.

1. Present:

H Macpherson, M Halliwell (Vice Chair), C Morley (Secretary) T Saxon (Treasurer), I Bell, P Blackburn, S Castillo, P Davies, R Ellis, W Kaufman, A Lawson, G Lewis, S MacLachlan, R Mason, I Scott and M Whalan.

Apologies: M Collins

2. Minutes of the Previous Meeting
These were accepted as a true record and will now go on the website.

3. Matters Arising
None

Action List Review
The Secretary asked the Exec to comment on the status of their Action List duties.

HM and MH noted that they had spoken to Martine Walsh about the annual CUP lecture costs (in terms of speaker expenses). There will be a small increase in the amount allocated to this next year and the matter is still under review.

It was agreed that Martine Walsh will consult with the Treasurer and the Conference Subcom chair regarding flight costs and other expenses. RM noted that the 2008 Edinburgh Conference didn’t have any support for the CUP speaker and welcomed the move.

Other Action List duties will be discussed under the relevant heading below.

4. Chair’s Business (HM reporting)

(a)Announcements

HM announced that Jude Davies has been made Professor of American Literature and Culture at the University of Winchester and Richard Carwardine is to become the next Warden of Corpus Christi College, University of Oxford. Ian Scott has recently been elected to the AHRC Peer Review College. Also, Philip Davies, Emeritus Professor at De Montfort University and Director of the Eccles Centre, has been elected as a Rothermere American Institute Fellow, in recognition of his ‘exceptional contribution to the intellectual life of the RAI’ and his ‘distinction in academic, professional or public life.’

HM also noted that a PhD Student at Sheffield, Kaleem Ashraf, had his poetry read by Julia Wright (writer, activist and daughter of the great Richard Wright) at the National Unveiling of the Richard Wright Stamp at the Chicago Post Office on 9 April 2009. The ceremony was part of the centennial celebrations of Wright’s life and work.

HM announced that Vivien Hart, former Professor of American Studies at Sussex and RAE panellist in 1996 and 2001, died on 2 February.

HM had received mixed news regarding American Studies programmes this quarter. Sussex has retained is status as an American Studies department, which is good news and welcome in the current climate. In addition, the University of Leicester has seen a marked increase in applications to its American Studies courses, as announced in the Times Higher. The Director of the Centre for American Studies, George Lewis, noted the Obama Effect. The rise is approximately 60%. As another measure of the strength of American Studies at Leicester, a talk by Mark Lanning (assistant cultural attaché US Embassy London) on ‘President Obama’s First 100 Days: Past, Present and Future’ on 16 March 2009 attracted an audience of 147 individuals. Manchester has also reported that applications are buoyant, particularly in relation to new joint honours programmes with English and History. Nottingham too has had a large increase in applications. On the downside however, King’s College London has announced that it will concentrate on postgraduate provision and phase out their undergraduate provision in AS over the next three years. HM asked colleagues if they wished BAAS to write to their VC about this, but colleagues did not wish this to occur.

HM reported to the committee that she had written to the Vice Chancellor, Dean, and Head of School at Liverpool John Moores following discussions with Joanna Price about the future of American Studies at the University as well as the American Studies Resource Centre. Although initially slated for closure, HM reported that American Studies has been saved, and will be merging with the English Department. In addition, there is continued support for the ASRC.

(b)Correspondence

HM was sent the Academy of Social Sciences bulletin (previously circulated by email). She also received a list of the new Academicians. HM noted that BAAS does have the opportunity to put people forward. Interested individuals should contact HM and CM.

HM received the minutes of the REF Advisory Group first round meetings (previously circulated by email—and to be discussed below under the RAE).

HM also noted that she had received a number of emails from Professor Pete Messent regarding the RAE, which will discuss later in the agenda (email replies circulated).

(c)Invitations

HM was invited to the upcoming Fulbright 60th Anniversary Lecture on 13 May but is unable to attend.

(d)Consultations and Activities

HM attended a meeting of the Chief Executive/Chief Officers’ Group for the Academy of Social Sciences held at the Nuffield Foundation in London on 3 March. Amongst the issues discussed were academy events, consultation on the Research Ethics Framework, membership, sharing of resources, and the funding of the academy. Stephen Anderson, the Executive Director, confirmed that no changes were planned for the funding of the Academy until it was in a position to show more benefit to members. BAAS has an opportunity to nominate 5 members for the position of Academician. Professor Cary Cooper was announced as the new Chair of the Academy Council.

HM attended a meeting of the Associate Fellows of the ISA on 4 March in London; the ISA is interested in setting up research training for AS postgraduates, and HM suggested that they contact Michael Collins and look at attending and working with the annual postgraduate conference.

HM (along with MH) attended a meeting with CUP to talk about JAS issues on 13 March in London (to be discussed under Publications),

(e)Miscellaneous

HM noted that she had fielded answered questions about post graduate provision in the UK by a prospective American student and answered queries about the US newspaper database. She also distributed CFPs as appropriate to the Webster and to the mailbase coordinator. HM corresponded with media outlets regarding the death mask of George Washington and she corresponded with the director of the Bath International Music Festival about funding opportunities for the Appalachian Strand of the programme.

HM has been making enquires about the American Studies Research Portal but so far has not have any leads as to what has happened to this. It seems to have disappeared without a trace and is a significant loss. HM noted that if this is no longer available, we may need to think about compiling an ‘Expert List’ on the BAAS website.

5. Secretary’s Business

(a)CM noted that, as usual, her main role revolved around information flow. She regularly passed information on to Alison Kelly, Clare Elliot and Graham Thompson for ASIB, the mailbase and the website respectively. Information was also passed on to various members of the committee for information, dissemination or interest.

(b)CM wrote to Ms Haydn Parks at BUNAC, inviting BUNAC to host a stand at the conference and to liaise with the teachers at the BAAS Teachers’ Meeting. Ms Parks was given the contact details of CMB and PB.

(c)CM helped direct people with research queries to the appropriate sources; she dealt with many requests for information on American Studies MA and PhD programmes; and, again, had a few requests from American Studies graduates in search of employment and careers advice. CM noted that she fielded enquires for bibliographic assistance from many overseas academics (she thanked the committee for their assistance with these queries); directed enquiries regarding the conference to CMB; advertised the conference and the elections in particular via the usual avenues and after the elections at the AGM will update the Charities Commission information with details of the committee members. She also updated and sent out the External Examiner’s list.

(d)CM noted that she had dealt with various requests for speakers: dealing with BBC 4 in their research into 1950s American airports and BBC Online regarding the death of John Updike, amongst others.

(e)CM updated the BAAS Standing Orders adding the JAS Assistant Editor can become a co-opted member of the committee.

(f)CM noted that she had dealt with a few emails and lengthy phone call enquiries regarding the BAAS Exec. As yet, however, she noted that she had not received any Nomination Forms. CM asked colleagues to strongly advertise the AGM and the elections.

(g)CM noted that she had also contacted two web design companies for assistance with the amelioration of the website and she is awaiting responses.

6. Treasurer’s Business (TS reporting)

(a)TS circulated the BAAS annual accounts, noting a change in the Charity Commission’s conditions with regard to how we classify ourselves as a charity. She noted that we are now required to stress how we are of benefit to the community and the general public (in terms of unwaged or less waged people, i.e. PG students). TS noted that as yet there was no template for phrasing our Public Benefit but added that we should have clearer guidelines next year.

(b)TS noted that subscriptions are down on last year which means that our income from subscriptions has dropped £3000 this year (see p. 10, point 4, of BAAS Accounts 2008). She noted that there have been a few cancelled Standing Orders. BAAS will need to monitor this issue as it may be a continuing trend; undoubtedly, the current financial crisis has had an impact. TS also noted that the costs for Journals and Publications have increased in the past year and this was partly due to the Discover American Studies CD project.

(c)In terms of Income and Deficit, we currently stand with a good deficit of £14,000. This is a positive position (as we should not make a profit) and certainly no cause for concern.

(d)HM raised the issue of possibly setting limits to the amount of monies awarded by BAAS to fund conferences (i.e. to possibly cap the BAAS Conference Grant as we do need to have some parameters). DE said that he preferred keeping the current situation as something like the introduction of deadlines would curtail the amount of assistance that we could offer. He suggested that deadlines would introduce an extra level of administration. TS said that deadlines might be set to match flurries in terms of applications; as it stands there is an implicit deadline in the four Exec meetings. HM suggested that we continue to monitor this situation and discuss it further at the next meeting. TS will check back on the spreadsheets for the past few years in order to get a sense of when most Conference Grant Award bids are received.

(e)The Treasurer noted that the bank accounts (as at 15 April 2009) were as follows: General Deposit, £17,214.69; Short Term Awards, £1701.44; Current, £21,349.73; Conference, £969.96; making a total of £41,235.82. The amount in the RBS Jersey is £15,474.61 and the US Dollar Account has $9,460.90.

(f)TS reported that fully paid up members for 2010 currently stand at 462 including 160 postgraduates. This does not compare favourably to the position last year, which was 523 members (with 190 postgraduates). When those who haven’t so far updated their Standing Orders are included, the numbers rise to 525 (179 postgraduate) compared to 586 (with 209 postgraduates) in April 2008.

(g)TS also raised the matter of the proposed raise in fees, which is to be brought to the AGM. TS reminded that committee that she had emailed a document with details of the breakdown. TS will propose a rise in full membership to £48; this will cost £34 for PG with the journal. The cost for PGs without the journal is £14. Retired members with the journal will rise to £44; and the cost for retired members without the journal will rise to £14. This rise in subscription takes into account funds which will be designated to develop the BAAS website and cover the cost incurred by the increased number of JAS issues. MH noted that the move from 3 to 4 JAS issues is fiscally neutral and actually represents a better scenario in terms of what we get out of JAS (as well as this, the extra issue will give more colleagues a chance to publish). This rise in fees is to be held for three years (the last BAAS subscription increase was 2002).

7. Development Subcommittee (WK reporting)

(a)On behalf of the Development Subcom WK recommended that the following small conferences be supported: Ruth Hawthorn’s ‘New Clear Forms’ poetry conference at the University of Glasgow (£300); H Mitchell for the BAAS Annual PG conference at Northumbria (£300); Phil Davies for the Congress to Campus 6th Form Conference (£300); Kathryn Nichol and Jenny Terry for a Toni Morrison symposium at the University of Durham (£280); Richard Martin’s David Lynch conference (£300); Dick Ellis for the New American Studies Conference at the University of Birmingham (£300); Bella Adams has requested £200 for the ASRC Schools Conference; Eleanor Thompson requested £300 to fund PG bursaries at the upcoming HOTCUS conference. All applications were supported by the committee.

(b)WK noted that there does not seem to be a Teachers’ meeting scheduled for the Nottingham Conference. In the past there has always been a Teachers’ day. RM noted that there had been no such meeting at the Edinburgh Conference. Indeed, there has not been a Teachers’ conference meeting since 2007. In the past IR liaised with the Teachers’ link to set this up. HM suggested that WK liaise with Bella Adams and ascertain if she has the list of American Studies teachers/schools as it is imperative that we engage with schools. IS noted that as Awards Chair he had lists of schools which might be of use. However, he questioned how useful this might ultimately prove as despite his contacting extra schools he had heard very little back from schools and there had been a rather small number of applications for the Schools’ essay prize. All acknowledged that it can be difficult to reach teachers. SM raised the possibility of each of us in our own area holding American Studies activities for schools and A-level students. She noted that things are happening with schools on a local level. For instance, there are many American Studies A-level reading days at universities across the country.

(c)WK reminded that committee that in the past there had been money available to assist teachers in attending the meeting and perhaps if this were better known (if indeed it is still the case) we might be able to attract more teachers. TS noted that there were very few School members. She suggested that we write to Schools alerting them that it is now free now for Schools to join BAAS. HM suggested that another way forward could be to use the Congress to Campus link. All ideas to be taken forward to the next meeting and discussed with the new Teachers’ Representative.

(d)Related to this matter, PB suggested that the Annual Conference might be attractive to Teachers if there was a built-in programme (or a strand) in line with A-Level/GCSE teaching. Otherwise, he noted, there is not a lot on the conference programme for teachers to go to. HM noted that the conference organiser should have a Schools’ Liaison officer on the organisation team. PB also suggested the possibility of a dedicated Schools Conference to generate links with BAAS. He also reminded the committee of the successful involvement of School students with the Manchester PG conference. In order for this to happen again, MC will need to liaise with the local schools and the PG conference co-ordinator. WK to discuss these ideas with the new Teacher’s Representative. Finally on this matter, PB noted that the website needs a dedicated Schools’ strand.

(e)HM reminded the committee that we also must ensure that when we fund events we need to ask the organisers to advertise BAAS with the BAAS leaflets and make sure that our support is noted on advertising. MH raised the issue of making a PowerPoint slide to project on the wall at BAAS-supported conferences. All agreed that we need to advertise BAAS when we give out money, to raise or public profile and show our benefit. CM to reformat the BAAS leaflet with new members’ details and prepare a BAAS slide.

9. Publications Subcommittee (MH reporting)

(a)BRRAM

Nothing to add to KM’s extensive written report from the previous meeting.

(b)Edinburgh University Press (EUP)

Nothing to report.

(c)Journal of American Studies

Following a meeting between HM, MH, SC, SL and Martine Walsh in London on 13 March 2009, the proposal to move from 3 to 4 issues per year from 2010 was put before and accepted by, the committee. It will be raised at the AGM in terms of the rise in subscription costs. The extra issue would cost an additional £5, making the rate £20 for BAAS members to receive JAS. The page length of future issues will be 240 pp.

MH noted that CUP will create a special ‘Best of JAS’ page of articles from the archives by the end of June. They will also provide a short piece for ASIB about the archive, its creation, and its functionality. The piece will also introduce First View publication. SC will organise the article for the summer issue of ASIB (noting AK’s 31 July deadline).

MH noted that SL will present an introduction to the online developments of the journal ahead of the JAS lecture during the Nottingham conference.

MH also mentioned that the proposal to add an additional Associate Editor to the JAS team was discussed at the London meeting in March. This proposed role would possibly called the ‘Media Editor’, with a shorter 2-year term which would be renewable for up to one term. It was agreed that SC and SL would produce a formal paper to be submitted in advance of the next Publication Subcommittee in summer 2009.

(d)American Studies in Britain (ASIB)

The deadline for the next issue is 31 July.

(e)US Studies Online

The Editor has produced a paper flyer for the BAAS conference packs, and will advertise the forthcoming issue (which includes papers from the Exeter BAAS Postgraduate Conference) through an e-flyer.

(f)BAAS Website

DE noted that BLARS may have found a possible solution to the ongoing issues regarding the website. Dr Bella Adams suggested that a way forward might be for her to become the Webster (she has expertise in web-design). She had suggested integrating the maintenance of the website with her teaching by setting students website-related tasks. DE and others thought that this was a plausible way forward as long as BA maintained complete editorial control over the website.

MH had a quotation through from a professional web-design company and wondered if it might be a better idea to have a professional redesign of the website before handing it over to BA. He also noted that it would be necessary for BA to work with Graham Thompson as GT is the only person who understands how the website works on a technical level.

HM suggested that we empower DE to talk to BA and to invite her to the next meeting and sit on the Publications Subcom. DE will ask BA to liaise with GT to discuss her technical capabilities.

10. Conference Subcommittee (SM reporting)

(a)SM reported all was in place for the Nottingham conference although sadly Professor Alison Graham is ill and will have to miss her plenary lecture. Professor Douglas Tallack (Leicester) will take her place.

(b)The Call for Papers for BAAS 2010 at UEA is in the conference packs. TRS will be at the conference.

(c)On the subject of future conferences, SM noted that basic arrangements were in place at UEA, UCLAN, Manchester, Exeter and Birmingham.

11. Awards Subcommittee (IS reporting)

(a)IS reported that the awards business had been concluded for the year with the exception of the extended deadline for Eccles submissions running to May 15th. IS and Michelle Smith will coordinate these submissions and pass them on to the panel who would then deliver the results to the new Chair of the subcommittee.

(b)IS thanked all those who had judged the awards, especially those who were not members of the Exec.

(c)IS noted that BAAS will hand out 29 awards in 2009 worth a total of nearly £70,000.

(d)IS reported that the TAship at Wyoming had been very successful again and that this will continue through another cycle for a further two years at least. He noted that Amy Hopkins will take up her TAship this year in the English Department at the University of New Hampshire.

(e)IS reported that after the call for nominations, two inaugural fellows had been chosen for the BAAS Honorary Fellowship. Both Mick Gidley of Leeds and Richard King of Nottingham will be in attendance at the conference and were delighted to have been nominated.

12. Libraries and Resources Subcommittee (DE reporting)

(a)DE reported that the most recent meeting of BLARs, the Subcom had discussed the matter of collaborating with Intute to develop an American Studies presence. This has since been pursued and BA is preparing a tutorial page for American Studies students to evaluate and critique materials. The ultimate plan is to develop a series of refereed websites on the back of this. DE will send out a call for referees via the mailbase. He also suggested the possibility of working with the JAS Editorial Board referees and reviewers. DE to liaise with SC.

(b)DE noted that there would be a panel at the conference entitled ‘Dirty Filthy Copyright’. This panel will also run at the UEA 2010 BAAS Annual Conference but the emphasis next year will be on intellectual property and research impact.

(c)DE noted that he had successfully applied to US Embassy for support for BLARs journal.

(d)DE reported that there are still copies of the Discover American Studies CD available. DE noted the 22% rise in AS applicants, adding that it might be argued that the CD had a role in this. He also mentioned that Birmingham had a 38% increase in applications.

13. EAAS (PD reporting)

(a)PD circulated a full and detailed report which noted that the EAAS board had recently met in Zurich (3-5 April). It had been discovered that the legal registration of EAAS as an official entity had expired due to changes in the law in Austria (where the registration had been made. At the Board meeting in Austria an extra special meeting was held to reconstitute the organisation under German law. This has led to an extension of the terms of some of the current members to be extended by one year. PD reminded the committee that the current officers are: President – Hans Jurgen Grabbe (until 2013); Vice President – Martin Heusser (until 2011); General Secretary – Jenel Virden (until 2011); Treasurer – Stephen Matteson (until 2013).

(b)PD reported that at the Zurich meeting the President had made a recommendation that national associations adopt a common electoral term for their representatives to EAAS, of a four-year term, limited to maximum of two terms. Terms currently range from 2 years to no fixed limit, most, but not all, with the possibility of re-election, and about half the national associations appear to have limits. PD noted that while there was sympathy for the President’s search for a common system, it seemed clear that many organisations would not change their current practices, so the President requested that the senior executive of EAAS at least be kept fully and promptly in touch with any changes in the officers of the national associations. PD added that this issue would undoubtedly arise again in the future.

(c)PD observed that BAAS is currently the 4th largest association of the 21 members, Our declared 456 members make up 11% of the total membership of EAAS. The Spanish Association for English and American Studies has 539 members, the French Association for American Studies has 720 members, and the German Association has 841 members. These four associations make up 61% of the total membership. PD noted that some associations are more multi-disciplinary than us and this is something we need to work had at in the future.

(d)PD noted that national associations were asked to re-advertise the Rob Kroes prize. PD has sent this information to the membership via the mailbase. He also reminded the committee of the publication opportunities in the European Journal of American Studies.

(e)PD noted that EAAS would like a more prominent link from the redesigned BAAS website. He added that in run up to the Dublin conference a more prominent link would be especially beneficial to BAAS members.

(f)PD reported that the EAAS Board had examined proposals received for the 2010 Dublin conference: 24 of 42 workshops were invited (there were 10 proposals received). He noted that British-based academics would have further opportunities when the workshops will advertise their CFPs. PD noted that workshop participants should be members of their national associations. There was also a proposal at the EAAS executive meeting that workshop proposals should only be accepted from valid members of national associations. PD had made the point that in nations where American Studies associations are not wholly multidisciplinary it makes little sense for a scholar to go to the expense of joining in order to speculate a workshop proposal to EAAS. In the interests of expanding the multidisciplinary reach of American Studies, PD had argued that any membership requirement be limited to requiring non-member proposers to join their national association if their proposals were accepted. The discussion at Zurich was inconclusive and the issues may well be aired again.

14. RAE

(a)HM welcomed Professor Paul Cammack, Head of Politics and Philosophy at Manchester Metropolitan University and Chair of RAE Subpanel 47. Professor Cammack was invited to the meeting to discuss the REF. Professor Cammack began his presentation by mentioning that the next meeting of the REF team would take place on 28 April. He invited the committee to email him with thoughts and input to bring to the discussions. He also mentioned that he, like all RAE panellists, undertook a commitment to confidentiality and had destroyed all information relating to the RAE even before the results were publicised; he therefore has no authority to enter into further analysis of the RAE decisions.

(b)Professor Cammack identified three key points in relation to the REF: (1) government steer; (2) shape of the exercise; and (3) how do we, the subject community, affect the exercise and how do to we position ourselves?

(c)The overall steer from the government was that research must contribute to the competitiveness of the UK in the global economy; and it must have some relevance to public policy issues. This was a tough task for many of the humanities, but the issue would not go away, so had to be addressed.

(d)This would be reflected in the shape (point 2) of the REF – impact will replace esteem. While it is already clear that there will be some academic consultation in validating the changes that are on the way, his sense was that this would really only take place at the margins. The central policy drive is already set in place and seems non-negotiable.

(e)Professor Cammack circulated a summary document relating to the Round 1 meetings of the REF Advisory Groups (February 2009). It noted, among other things, that the lack of a mechanism to ensure consistency between Main Panels had been acknowledged as a weakness of RAE2008.

(f)Professor Cammack noted that consideration of environment would be retained for the REF, with some modifications to secure greater uniformity of approach.

(g)Professor Cammack drew the committee’s attention the new emphasis on impact and invited the Exec to consider what form this might take. He noted that this was something the subject community might be able to influence. Measurement of impact might extend back before 2008, and impact ‘enablers’ (engagement with users and knowledge transfer activity) might be measured as well as evidence of actual impact. The REF Advisory Group was looking at the way the research councils (and others) measured impact. Professor Cammack suggested that the committee might look at the approaches of the relevant research councils (AHRC and ESRC), and consider whether it should use its influence to encourage their adoption (perhaps in a modified form) for the REF. This would avoid having to deal with different systems of measurement (for example, in bids for research funding and subsequently for the REF), and it would avoid the imposition of an approach dominated by science.

(h)Professor Cammack noted that Bibliometrics will be the focus of the next meetings of the REF Advisory Group on 28 April and 19 June. He invited the committee to send him comments and suggestions in good time to bring to these meetings.

(i)HM mentioned that she intends to convene the next Heads of American Studies meeting before 19 June and would hopefully be able to offer some information and comments from that meeting. She asked whether impact would refer to all research or just submitted research. Professor Cammack could not be sure, but felt that it might be possible for a narrative to address research which had a policy impact even if it was not reflected in specific outputs submitted. He added that one of the options being considered was fewer panels, and consideration of environment at Main Panel or even institutional level.

(j)MH asked if the STEM REF would be a kind of ‘trial run’ for the Arts and Humanities exercise. PC responded that the shape of the exercise might be the same for both but that, for example, the weightings might be different.

(k)IB said the notion of ‘coherence between research councils’ was a bad idea as the councils were so different. However, he acknowledged that the AHRC now has a great emphasis on ‘impact’ (noting a recent feature in THE entitled ‘Humanities Impact on Public Domain’).

(l)HM noted that the primary issue of concern is how ‘impact’ will be measured or defined. Professor Cammack said that there was bound to be leeway in how impact was measured / interpreted but added that BAAS should think about this and participate in the discussion.

(m)SC asked if impact might be measured by a tool like ‘googlescholar’ (in terms of bibliometrics). Professor Cammack said that this had not been mentioned, but added that the Advisory Group were thinking more in terms of ‘take up’ by users. The discussion then turned to the issue of Knowledge Transfer. Both Professor Cammack and HM noted that there will have to be alternative measures developed as the current impression is that we are supplicants rather than drivers of this process.

(n)PD noted that in the end conceptualisation was important. He asked how we might measure things like ‘advisory roles’ which do not necessarily have a paper trail. He added that we offer assistance and expert research advice to teachers, schools, etc. PD asked if these kinds of things might be part of the narrative. Professor Cammack noted that he had no particular information on this although it was clear that things like consultancy (especially to the government) feed into the policy making process. IB noted that there is a danger that examples such as those offered by PD might be perceived as ‘soft’ rather than ‘hard’ data.

(o)MH raised the issue of the perception of American Studies from last RAE, i.e. research submitted did not reflect all the American Studies scholarship entered into the exercise (as much was submitted to other panels). He said that it was necessary for us to be able to track our scholarship in future. He also noted that the league tables had created made a kind of hierarchy and asked Professor Cammack to comment on this. Professor Cammack noted that there is less of a hierarchy than before but acknowledged that league tables had been produced. He reiterated the necessity of an Area Studies panel for the next exercise and added that the situation of research capture was not unique to American Studies. Unfortunately, there is no way of capturing the sum total of work in the field of American Studies submitted elsewhere. Some had been cross-referred to subpanel 47, but much had not. HM said that it might be possible to write to institutions to see where what is considered American Studies work was submitted. Professor Cammack also suggested that the BAAS conference might be the best place to sponsor policy-related panels or media-attractive panels. This might be one way of getting at the essence of ‘impact’.

(p)GL noted institutional confusion about the cross-referral process. He asked if this would this be clearer in the REF. Professor Cammack said that this should have been straightforward, but delays in sending and receiving material had caused practical difficulties. HM added that cross-referrals were received at the discretion of panel to which they were cross-referred.

(q)IS asked if there was a way to ensure that consistency of quality/prestige was maintained across panels. Professor Cammack noted that the only way to maintain quality and criteria would require a massive normalisation process but this was impossible due to different debates and discussions across panels. One could only guarantee the process in procedural rather than substantive terms.

(r)IS noted that narrative about how the submission was interpreted needed tightening and suggested that the REF Advisory Group have a dialogue with VCs about how to utilise the results.

(s)AL asked about timetable – when would we know when we ought to start thinking about our research in terms of impact. Professor Cammack reiterated that we ought to be thinking about ‘impact’ now. He added that the timetable on the website indicates that next year the picture for the REF would be clear. Professor Cammack added that it seemed that the government was working to a very clear template, and that advisors like himself were likely to have influence only at the margins. He concluded that the REF exercise is in large part a mechanism to justify changes that were already coming.

14. Any Other Business

HM reminded that committee that Gary Grubb from the AHRC would make a presentation of the AHRC’s vision at the conference.

HM offered her thank to outgoing committee members: MH, IS, AL, TS and PB.

15. Date of next meeting

The next Executive Committee meeting will be held at Kings College London on Friday 5 June.
Subcom meetings will commence at 10.30am.

Dr. Catherine Morley
email: catherine.morley@leicester.ac.uk

BAAS Executive Committee Meeting: January 17, 2009

Minutes of the 257th meeting of the Executive Committee, held at Manchester Metropolitan University on January 17, 2009.

1. Present

M Halliwell (Vice Chair), C Morley (Secretary) T Saxon (Treasurer), I Bell, M
Collins, P Davies, R Ellis, W Kaufman, A Lawson, G Lewis, S MacLachlan, R Mason, I Scott.

Apologies: H Macpherson, P Blackburn, S Castillo, and M Whalan.

2. Minutes of the Previous Meeting

These were accepted as a true record and will now go on the website.

3. Matters Arising

None

Action List Review
The Secretary asked the Exec to comment on the status of their Action List duties.
TS mentioned that her dealings with RBS were ongoing. All other duties to be discussed and commented on under the relevant sections below.

4. Chair’s Business

MH reporting on behalf of HM.
(a) Announcements
Will Kaufman has been made Professor of American Literature and Culture at the University of Central Lancashire. Craig Phelan has been offered a Chair in History at Kingston University.

Douglas Tallack has been appointed Pro-Vice-Chancellor and Head of the College of Arts, Humanities and Law at the University of Leicester from 1 February 2009.

Rebecca Ferguson (University of Wales, Lampeter) gained a Recognition Award from the Toni Morrison Society in America her book Rewriting Black Identities: Transition and Exchange in the Novels of Toni Morrison (2007). The award was conferred at the Biennial Conference of the society last June.

Gareth Davies (St. Annes, Oxford) was awarded the Richard Neustadt Prize of the American Politics Group of the Political Studies Association for his book See Government Grow (2007).

Philip Davies has become co-editor of the Academy of Social Sciences journal 21st Century Society.

Martin Halliwell (University of Leicester) has been appointed to the AHRC Panel D (Languages and Literature) for 2009.

The Institute for the Study of the Americas formally launched its new United States Presidency Centre (USPC) on October 24, 2008. The Centre was set up to promote and facilitate research and scholarship on the US presidency, not only from a contemporary institutional and policy perspective but also in terms of its historical and cultural significance.

(b) Correspondence

HM wrote to the Vice-Chancellor at Lancaster expressing BAAS’s disappointment at the closure of American Studies and received a reply from the Dean of Faculty, Tony McEnery (circulated).

HM wrote to Martine Walsh (CUP) regarding their financial support package for the JAS lecturer. In Ms Walsh’s reply, she noted that it is necessary to set a budget limit for this. In 2008 it was £775 and in 2009 it will be £800. BAAS will need to discuss and agree a strategy for dealing with the potential shortfall that will leave in the conference budget and we will need to plan for this in the future. The Exec discussed this matter, noting that is was difficult to anticipate a visiting lecturer’s airfare (much depended on who would book the flights; also, flights booked from UK coming from US can be expensive). It was agreed that the shortfall would have to be covered in the conference budget. TS suggested that costs are run by Treasurer and the Conference Chair well in advance. SM noted that £300 would have to be taken into account to cover the cost of the JAS lecturer’s conference fee, as well as any incidental costs. SM asked if it might be possible to take on the booking of travel ourselves. This would have to be handled by the Conference Organiser and the Chair of the Conference Subcom. MH asked RM to look into budget to check how much over the CUP speaker cost and report back to the Conference Subcom in June. SM suggested that we return to CUP to check procedure with over-run. HM to discuss with Martine Walsh at a meeting arranged by MH for March.

HM wrote to the AHRC regarding the new panel structures and received a reply from Shearer West (previously circulated via email). It was on the basis of this correspondence that HM spoke at the UKCASA meeting about area studies in relation to the AHRC on 8 January. Other area studies associations expressed similar concerns and thanked BAAS for being proactive in writing to the AHRC. HM noted to Professor West that BAAS welcomed the commitment from the AHRC to seek American Studies experts for panels, though added that we were disappointed that in the reply to us, the overall nature of area studies was not recognized.

HM received the Autumn Fulbright Newsletter (previously circulated via email). HM also circulated the Winter Fulbright Newsletter.

HM wrote to Felicity Donohoe congratulating her on her appointment as editor of US Studies Online.

HM has had email correspondence with Dr Nigel Bowles (RAI) who noted that he would be very glad to offer the RAI as a helpful partner to colleagues in UK universities who wish to put on workshops or conferences over the next three or four years. There will be a lot of RAI events throughout 2009 and 2010 and Dr Bowles is keen for BAAS members to be involved actively. HM and Dr Bowles are hoping to meet in the spring. MH suggested that it would be worth pursuing discussions with Dr Bowles. PD noted that Dr Bowles is very open and has held the APG conference there. GL has also had discussions with him and says that he is very open to forging links with BAAS.

HM corresponded with Michael Macy regarding links between BAAS and India—Michael used to be based at the London US Embassy but is now in New Delhi. WK noted that he was very enthusiastic about pursuing links with India, which has the largest AS association in the world. In general, the committee agreed that this was worth pursuing. WK to liaise with HM on to proceed with this.

(c) Invitations

HM was invited to the RAI for a lunch on Tuesday 28 October with Barton Gellman, a Pulitzer prize-winning journalist on The Washington Post, but had to decline.

HM was invited to the Fulbright’s 60th anniversary lecture on 20 January but had to decline.

HM attended the Election Night Party at the Embassy as well as a Breakfast meeting at the US Ambassador’s house the next morning at 8am. She noted that many dignitaries were at the event, including Sir David Frost.

(d) Consultations and Activities

HM was interviewed by William Lee Adams (Time Magazine) regarding American Studies. The article appeared in October: see http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1850554,00.html

HM sent out a message to American Studies heads about American Studies alumni on behalf of the Development subcommittee. WK will report further in his report.

HM met briefly with Dr Maxine Molyneux, Director of the ISA, in London on 8 January at the UKCASA meeting. Dr Molyneux noted that her current priority is to respond to restructuring issues within the ISA but added that she is keen to meet up in the spring to look at how BAAS and the ISA can link further. Dr Molyneaux noted to HM that she hoped to attend the BAAS conference but may need to wait until the 2010 conference.

(e) RAE
HM noted that eight institutions were submitted to sub-panel 47: Birmingham, UEA, King’s College London, University of Liverpool, London Metropolitan University, Nottingham, Sussex and Swansea. The unit covered American Studies and Anglophone Area Studies. There were a total of 87 Category A staff submitted. The largest percentage of 4* work was 30% for Sussex, though all submissions had World Leading activity. The Staff-adjusted Mean is as follows:

4* 20
3* 24
2* 36
1* 14
U 6

This is roughly in line with other units to which American Studies colleagues might have been submitted (English, History, Politics, CCM, for example) though there are slightly more unclassified results in unit 47 than in these other sub-panel results.

HM observed that BAAS needs to be proactive in noting the excellence of American Studies research and also in ensuring that people know that much more of what could be considered American Studies research was submitted to panels other than sub-panel 47 and that our research and teaching base remains strong.

MH noted that there is no way of tracing which research outputs were cross-referred to unit 47 from other sub-panels.

(f) Miscellaneous

HM noted that she has responded to requests for information and experts, especially in relation to American politics (for example, BBC 5Live). She has replied to requests for information about the US newspapers database as well as the upcoming conference. She also responded to an undergraduate student survey regarding US elections and the “Obama effect”.

HM received a copy of the Political Studies Association Awards booklet from Philip Davies as a model for what we might do on awards. She noted that we need to have a press release ready and available to go to the THE as well as other networks for our awards to try to generate publicity. IS to handle THE BAAS Awards Press Release.

HM initiated a discussion about the subcoms, noting that a few years ago we instituted a new subcom for Awards to recognize the additional work related to it. HM suggested that we revert to 3 main subcoms in the summer (which would necessitate a change to our standing orders, which we could approve in April). These subcoms would be: Development (including awards), Publications, and Conference, with a designated lead for Awards within Development (not the chair). What this would do is ensure that the important work of awards is done, but that there are also enough people without specific roles on the subcoms in order to ensure that they run effectively and smoothly. WK noted that Awards only came out of Development recently and it seems a little early to change back. WK also noted that Awards often joined Development and added that there had been a lot of correspondence between WK and IS. IS suggested that organising the Awards would be a major task for an ordinary member of the Development subcom. He added that there is a reasonably flexible arrangement now. TS suggested having a Chair and a VC of the Development subcom, with each responsible for areas. IB noted that the Awards Chair needed his/her freedom and the Awards subcom needs to keep its autonomy at times. MH suggested that WK has a further discussion about this with HM. The Committee agreed that the division of the subcoms currently works well as it is. The situation will be monitored and revisited in the future.

5. Secretary’s Business

(a) CM noted that, as usual, her main role revolved around information flow. She regularly passed information on to Alison Kelly, Clare Elliot and Graham Thompson for ASIB, the mailbase and website respectively.

(b) Most notably this autumn she has had much correspondence with Haydn Parks at BUNAC asking BAAS to extend its affiliation and ties (for a full summary of BUNAC’s activities and competitions see Minutes 256). Ms Parks has asked for help in disseminating information. CM has passed materials on through the usual channels. Ms Parks has asked CM to facilitate a meeting between her and Heads of Departments. CM felt that this was unfeasible for many reasons. The Committee agreed. CM noted that Ms Parks has also asked to be put in touch with teachers of American Studies. CM suggested that we invite Ms Parks to address the Teachers’ meeting at the conference. This was agreed with the committee. CM to write to Ms Parks.

(c) CM helped direct people with research queries to the appropriate sources; she has dealt with many requests for information on American Studies MA programmes; and, again, has had a few requests from American Studies graduates in search of employment and careers advice.

(d) CM has also dealt with various requests for speakers: dealing with the THINK Festival in Kingston and the Bath Speaker’s Association, amongst others. She has assisted the National Inventory Research Project in their enquiries.

(e) CM noted that she has recently updated BAAS’s contact addresses and the details of BAAS awards on the Peterson’s Listings, which is an online directory of charities, and she also updated details with the Grants Register. She declined an invitation to join the NVCO (National Council for Voluntary Organisations) on the grounds that BAAS’s annual income was too high to qualify for free membership.

(f) CM noted that she has received the Academy of Social Sciences Electronic bulletin (previously circulated electronically). She also received the latest Charities Commission newsletter (circulated).

(g) CM also advised the committee that she had received a royalties cheque for £211.03. This came from Edinburgh University Press and is revenue from the BAAS Paperbacks Series.

(h) CM has also updated the BAAS Standing Orders so that the JAS Assistant Editor can become an ex-officio member of the committee. However, this entails a change to the constitution which needs to be ratified at the AGM in April. CM to add this as an Agenda item.

(i) CM also noted that on 16 December 2008 she attended the Area Studies Advisory Group meeting on behalf of BAAS. Minutes will be circulated in due course. There are upcoming events which might be of interest to the BAAS membership, such as student study days and conferences.

(j)CM also advised the committee that she has coordinated and edited the TA testimonials, which will soon be posted on the website.

6. Treasurer’s Business (TS reporting)

(a) The Treasurer circulated a report to the committee noting that the bank accounts (as at 15 January 2009) were as follows: General Deposit, £41,459.56; Short Term Awards, £1371.12; Current, £1031.69; Conference, £969.96; making a total of £44,832.33. The amount in the RBS Jersey is still unclear and the US Dollar Account has $9422.43. The RBS paperwork has been sent off and we should know where we stand in a few weeks time.

(b) TS reported that fully paid up members for 2010 currently stand at 378 including 146 postgraduates. This does not compares favourably to the position last year, which was 413 members (with 135 postgraduates). When those who haven’t so far updated their Standing Orders are included, the numbers rise to 644 (238 postgraduate) compared to 479 (with 154 postgraduates) in January 2008.

(c) TS also raised the matter of the proposed raise in fees. She noted that CUP intend to raise fees for the BAAS subscription to JAS in 2010. So we have a situation where the proposed rise of £2/£3 would be eaten up by the JAS rise. She asked if we should add on more to the subscription cost at this stage. This would increase revenue as well as cover the JAS subscription rise. TS added that this seemed like a good idea as BAAS members would get something tangible for the rise. She proposed an increase of £5. PD noted that we need to ask JAS to hold the price for a number of years. HM to liaise with Ms Walsh on this matter. The proposed new subscription fees are as follows: Individual £46; Student (with JAS) £32; Student (w/out JAS) £14; retired membership with JAS would rise to £32. The Committee agreed that this seems a viable way forward. TS noted that JAS estimates will need to be fixed so that we can bring definite figures to the AGM. IS noted that it would be worth reminding members at the AGM that the cost of JAS on its own would be quite substantial.

7. Development Subcommittee (WK reporting)

(a) WK began his report by noting that HM had written HoDs regarding American Studies graduates, but BAAS had received replies only from P Messent, C Gair, R Crockatt and P Davies. These sources have yielded some high-profile names (including John Harvey, Razia Iqbal, etc.) and there are promises of more. However, WK is disappointed with the response overall and suggested that we might be simply revisiting old ground. However, he will continue to pursue it.

(b) The Development subcom received three applications for funding. The first request came from Dr Matthew Ward (Dundee) for the 10th Annual SASA Conference; an award of £300 was approved. The second request came from Karen Heath (Oxford) for a postgraduate conference entitled ‘The Nixon Era’; an award for £300 was approved with the explicit caveat that the award goes towards subsidising postgraduate attendance. The final funding request came from Professor Iwan Morgan for an ISA conference entitled ‘Seeking a New Majority: The Republican Party and American Politics’; this request for £300 was approved. WK asked if BAAS’s remit might be a little restrictive with the insistence on funding to be used to subsidise PGs. He asked if we might not be able to offer funding for other issues like speakers fees, etc? IS said that although £300 is not a lot of money, we do need to make it clear that we are a charitable organisation. It was agreed amongst the Committee that that the money needs to continue to go to PG funding. PD added that BAAS’s rules were wide enough to fund speakers who are talking to students. DE suggested broadened the terms of the Conference Award so that it could be used by the conference organisers to support post-doctoral/early career scholars who do not have an institutional affiliation. This was deemed a good idea and a long discussion followed regarding nomenclature. WK will redraft the Conference Award information to include the remit that awarded monies must be used by conference organisers to support PGs and unsalaried participants.

(c) DE has offered for BLARs to coordinate the INTUTE requests for American Studies experts. He will send a message out via the mailbase.

(d) WK discussed Schools Business noting that PB was worried by his inability to attend meetings regularly. WK suggested the possibility of appointing a second Schools Representative. He also suggested setting a Schools’ Representative an agenda and setting tasks. PD suggested that agenda was a good idea. WK will attend the Teachers’ meeting at the conference and discuss these issues with the teachers there. WK to liaise further with PB on this matter.

8. Postgraduate Business (MC reporting)

MC reported that the Exeter PG conference on 15 November 2008 was a tremendous success. He thanked the organisers who did a terrific job. Professor Judie Newman gave the plenary. In total there were 26 papers and about 40 attendees.

Some papers were selected for publication in US Online; Felicity Donohoe is currently coordinating the papers.

With regard to the 2010 PG conference, MC has had 4 enquiries (using the new online application system which he has developed). The successful application came from H Mitchell at Northumbria University. Ms Mitchell will apply to Embassy and to BAAS for support.

As mentioned above, MC has formalised the application procedure for hosting the BAAS PG conference. He has set an annual deadline of January 15 set for applications. This was felt to be an appropriate deadline and the Committee thanked MC for his work on the application form.

MC reported that the PG lunch is confirmed for the Nottingham conference.

MC also added that he is still collecting information for his ASIB PG bulletin (deadline 31 July).

9. Publications Subcommittee (MH reporting)

(a) BRRAM (KM sent a written report).

KM has written to Lord Howard to enquire whether he will grant permission for us to prepare a BRRAM title on the papers of his diplomat ancestor Sir Esmé Howard. KM has not yet received a reply.

KM had a meeting with Ms Gill Furlong at the University College London Archives to discuss the possibility of issuing some of their manuscript material in the BRRAM series. She would like to cooperate but needs to have the approval of her manager. KM and Ms Furlong discussed the potential of UCL’s Latin American Archives, covering Anglo-American banking, shipping and industrial material for the 19th and 20th centuries. KM will report further on this at the next meeting.

The BRRAM series relies very much on institutional standing orders from the United States. One of the long-standing university subscribers there has cancelled its standing order, and KM noted that we must hope others do not follow in the present international financial climate.

The William Davenport Papers (relating to a Liverpool slave merchant) have been added to the online resource on slavery and the slave trade (including existing BRRAM titles). This digital collection will be made available as an assemblage of source material, in various permutations, and priced accordingly.

The USPG Papers from Rhodes House Library are currently being filmed, and they will be released by the end of February 2009 in two batches comprising c.30 reels.

(b) Edinburgh University Press (EUP)

Nothing to report.

(c) Journal of American Studies

MH reported that a meeting had been organised for 13 March in London. This meeting is to bring the JAS Editors and Ms Martine Walsh together with the BAAS officers to discuss pressing issues such as the rise in subscription and the time-frame for the proposed move to four issues per annum.

On the related matter of the appointment of a second Assistant Editor, it was felt by the Committee that two Assistant Editors might possibly create more problems than it would solve. Therefore, it might be better to employ a second editorial assistant to the Assistant Editor. MH will bring this matter to the meeting on 13 March.

MH circulated the CV of Professor Marjorie Spruill, who was unanimously ratified by the Committee as a member of the Editorial Board.

(d) American Studies in Britain (ASIB)

AK had attended the morning meeting, where she reported that the publication of the Spring ASIB (Issue 100) would be mid February at the latest.

New deadlines were set for the Autumn with a 31 July copy deadline and a mid September signoff. This was to ensure that smooth and timely coordination with the Editor of Resources in American Studies (which is posted in the Autumn with ASIB).

(e) US Studies Online

Felicity Donohoe, the new Editor, has requested funds to produce a flyer to go in the Nottingham conference packs. The Committee agreed to fund this.

FD is working through the BAAS Exeter PG conference papers in preparations for her first issue.

(f) BAAS Website

MH reported on a subcom discussion about the need to refresh the website. Various other committee members suggested that it might be worth spending some money on a professional overhaul of the website. However, we need to solicit some quotations on this. CM to discuss the matter with GT and report back to the Committee at the next meeting.

10. Conference Subcommittee (SM reporting)

(a) SM reported that all was going well with the Nottingham arrangements. She circulated copies of CMB’s report.

(b) SM noted that there was a cap of £5000 on PG discounts; however, she added that this is flexible depending on the uptake of the retirement subsidy.
SM asked Committee if the fee for the reception for advertising next year’s conference could be raised to £600. This was agreed by the Committee, but GL added that we need to keep an eye on this to ensure that the full amount is spent.

(c) SM raised issue of the honorarium paid to conference organiser. The Committee agreed that this should be in line with the conference fee.
(d) On the subject of future conferences, SM noted that basic arrangements were in place at UEA, UCLAN, Manchester, Exeter and Birmingham. There was also interest expressed by the Rothermere American Institute.

11. Awards Subcommittee (IS reporting)

(a) IS reported that STA deadlines had closed, as had the BAAS Book Prize and the Wyoming TA-ship. Deadlines were approaching on the Ambassadors’ Awards, the Eccles Awards and the PG Essay Prize. He noted that in certain categories, applications have been excellent. The book prize has clearly galvanised people in all sorts of ways, and had attracted a very strong cohort. The Wyoming recipient is Emma Dodds from the University of Sunderland who will start in September 2009. He added that the plans in place for Awards part of the banquet.

12. Libraries and Resources Subcommittee (DE reporting)

(a) DE noted that BLARs is putting on a panel on IP, Copyright and the Web at Nottingham. BLARs have recruited a specialist panel on this, which will take place on first day of the conference after registration has begun and before the conference begins in full.

(b) DE reported that he had not yet established contact with Dr Bella Adams regarding her possible recruitment to BLARs. However, he has arranged to meet Dr Adams in February to discuss this matter and to explore how she might feed into INTUTE.

(c) On the topic of BLARs and INTUTE, DE reported that BLARs will liaise with INTUTE which is offering to host and maintain a website that identifies good American Studies resources and websites.

(d) Finally, DE noted that there had been effective liaisons between Dr Matthew Shaw and Dr Alison Kelly regarding the Autumn postage of RAS and ASIB.

13. EAAS (PD reporting)

(a) PD noted that deadline for EAAS conference workshop proposals was 31 January. PD urged Exec to encourage proposals.

(b) PD noted that at present it was unclear where/when the 2012 conference would be. The dates of 29 March-2 April 2012 have been proposed (which is two weeks ahead of BAAS conference for that year).

14. Any Other Business

(a) IS raised the matter of the funding implications of RAE. He suggested that we have an extended discussion of this at our next meeting. With this in mind it would be very helpful to have papers tabled in advance of 16 April. Any documents from Exec and ex-officio members should be sent to the Secretary by 14 April.

(b) CM raised the issue of possibly plotting meetings well in advance to ensure good turnout. This will be discussed further at the next meeting with the plan to set dates after the AGM at Nottingham.

15. Date of next meeting

The next Executive Committee meeting will be held at the University of Nottingham on 16 April 2009. Subcoms will not meet. The meeting will commence at 10.30am.

Dr. Catherine Morley
email: catherine.morley@leicester.ac.uk

BAAS Executive Committee Meeting: September 26, 2008

Minutes of the 256th meeting of the Executive Committee, held at University of Leicester on September 26, 2008.

1. Present

H Macpherson (Chair), C Morley (Secretary) T Saxon (Treasurer), I Bell, M
Collins, P Davies, R Ellis, M Halliwell, W Kaufman, S MacLachlan, R Mason, I Scott and M Whalan.

Apologies: P Blackburn, S Castillo, A Lawson, and G Lewis.

2. Minutes of the Previous Meeting

After minor corrections, these were accepted as a true record and will now go on the website.

3. Matters Arising

None

Action List Review
The Secretary asked the Exec to comment on the status of their Action List duties.
Duties to be discussed and commented on under the relevant sections below.

4. Chair’s Business
(a) Announcements
HM noted, with regret, the death of Charlotte Erickson, a former BAAS Secretary and Chair who remained closely connected with BAAS throughout her lifetime. HM noted that when she was Secretary, Professor Erickson often phoned her up with queries about the minutes, and always enjoyed finding out what issues were being addressed by the Executive. HM sent the family a letter of condolence and arranged for an obituary to be written for ASIB.

HM noted that Jonathan Munby has confirmed that Lancaster is closing its American Studies provision. HM will write to the VC at Lancaster to note BAAS’s disappointment with the closure.

Paul Grange at Nottingham will host an AHRC funded two-day workshop on Ephemeral Media (Beyond Text).

Sharon Monteith will complete an AHRC funded project on Civil Rights and the Liberal Imagination.

(b) Correspondence
On behalf of BAAS, HM sent a letter of welcome and congratulations to Nigel Bowles on taking over the Rothermere American Institute directorship. HM is hoping to meet with Dr Bowles in the autumn to discuss potential links between BAAS and the RAI.

HM sent a letter of congratulations to Bella Adams on taking over from Ian Ralston as Director at the ASRC.

HM wrote to the VCs of UEA and Nottingham as well as heads of department about the upcoming conferences and asking for their support. HM received a supportive letter from Richard Crockatt regarding support for Thomas Ruys-Smith.

HM received the summer issue of the Fulbright Newsletter (previously circulated electronically by the Secretary).

(c) Media
HM corresponded with BBC Radio 4, Radio 5 Live, Radio 3 and other media outlets about the elections, John McCain, a miniseries on American History, and Radio 3’s Free Thinking Festival of Ideas, passing on the names of BAAS members for panels and discussions, including, frequently, Philip Davies, who on behalf of BAAS and the Eccles Centre has given freely of his time on these matters.

HM was interviewed by William Lee Adams (Time Magazine) for an article about the health of American Studies. This is likely to come out next month and will be copied to BAAS.

(d) Invitations
On behalf of BAAS, HM attended the 4th of July Barbeque at Winfield House on 3 July.

HM was invited to meet new Embassy officials at Winfield House on 6 October but had to send apologies.

(e) Consultations and Activities
HM noted that there has been a lull in activities with A-HUG (Arts and Humanities User Group formerly the RAPID RESPONSE GROUP), but further conversations were launched last week. Jude Davies remains our contact. However, on behalf of BAAS, and in consultation with the other officers, HM declined to have BAAS’s name attached to the three letters proposed (one to AHRC, one to the THE, and one to HEFCE as it was generally agreed that the tone was somewhat intemperate). HM suggested that the letter to the AHRC could be supported if it were shorter—it focused on the ERIH, but it ran to some 4 pages single spaced. The letters to the THE and HEFCE focused on universities being run by managers and not academics, and did not, it was felt, advance BAAS’s cause.

ERIH (European Reference Index for the Humanities): HM corresponded with the Journal of American History regarding the ERIH. There are some groups who are writing to the AHRC to say that they do not want their journals to be part of the list. But as SN noted at the time, the list will go ahead and we need to be involved as experts. There are problems with the data sets (for instance, HM was contacted as the head of the Journal of American History). However, the Exec agreed that it was best to express our concern in cooperation with the ERIH rather than in opposition. MH questioned policy – noting the anomaly of modernism/modernity. HM noted that there does not seem to be a policy. PD noted that he had raised the issue of ERIH at EAAS, where it was met with bemusement. Very few EAAS members were aware of the ERIH or systems like it, adding that they did not understand its relevance. HM suggested that we need to keep a watching brief and regularly look out for updates.

HM has shared some correspondence with BUNAC (British Universities North America Club) regarding UG work opportunities. BUNAC (a not-for-profit organisation) is looking to raise awareness of flexible work and travel opportunities within the USA, as well as the BEST Travel Awards which offer financial assistance to undergraduates looking to take part in a student exchange programme in the US; this year 55% of those who received an award were enrolled on an AS course. BEST (BUNAC Educational Scholarship Trust) Scholarships are awarded annually which enable up to eight recipients to study in the US or Canada. The individual amounts vary but a typical award is in the region of approximately US$5,000-$10,000. BEST Travel Awards provide US$1,000 of travel cost support to each of 20 recipients undertaking a year of study abroad at a US College as part of an undergraduate degree. In 2007, BUNAC received 70 applications from undergraduates seeking financial assistance for their year of study exchange in America. 12 applications came from students on an American Studies course, of which 3 were granted a Travel Award. This year, over 100 applications have been received, of which 21 are from American Studies students enrolled on a course at a number of different institutions including University of Warwick, University of Sussex, University of Nottingham and University of Manchester. HM noted that we have set up a link on the BAAS website to the BUNAC programme, but asked should we do more to advertise these links? WK raised the issue of attaching our name to BUNAC and sponsoring work placements. HM felt it was problematic. PD suggested that we can really only publicise to UG teachers. TS suggested that they could subscribe to BAAS with free institutional membership and added that we should invite them to the conference in an effort to reach out to UGs. HM agreed that they should be invited to the next conference. PD suggested that we hold a panel or two on UG teaching/international American students.

HM reported on the June Heads of American Studies lunch at the previous meeting, but noted that subsequently there has been a lot of positive feedback generated from the Heads as well as a willingness to share best practice, including information on study abroad options. Paul Giles also shared his views about the future of American Studies in his position as outgoing Director of the RAI.

HM noted that the RAE results will be out by next meeting. She observed that it is already clear is that comparisons between universities will be more difficult to make than in previous years. Therefore it will be interesting to see how information is used by media. There will be a profile for institutions: esteem, research, etc., which will present a complicated results picture on 18 December.

(f) Miscellaneous
HM passed to the Secretary a query from Burnley College regarding promotional materials for BAAS. She answered various queries from people looking for funding and forwarded calls for papers to the webster and mailbase coordinator.

5. Secretary’s Business
(a) CM noted that, as usual, her main role revolved around information flow. She regularly passed information on to Alison Kelly, Clare Elliot and Graham Thompson for ASIB, the mailbase and website respectively. Notably this summer she has had much information from Haydn Parks at BUNAC asking BAAS to extend its affiliation and ties (for a full summary of BUNAC’s activities and competitions see Chair’s report). She has also disseminated much information regarding the extended Fulbright Awards and circulated the Fulbright newsletter. She helped direct people with research queries to the appropriate sources; she has dealt with many requests for information on American Studies MA programmes; and have even had requests from an American Studies graduate in search of employment and careers advice. CM has also dealt with numerous enquiries from BBC Radio and TV and Sky TV regarding programmes and news features on the Vice Presidential candidates (with PD stepping in for the BBC feature on Joe Biden); queries from BBC Radio 4 on David Reynolds’s programme on the presidency (with SC stepping into the discussion recently); and she directed William Lee Adams of Time to the appropriate sources for a piece on American Studies.

(b) CM was pleased to help a former BAAS PG David Carlaw place an essay on in the TLS in early September. The article is on the writer H.L. Humes

(c) CM wrote to CUP with an update of the new committee members for inclusion on the Editorial Board. She also attended the JAS Editorial Board meeting on 19 September (more details in Publications Business).

(d) CM noted that she had updated the BAAS leaflet with new committee details and has sent it out to various bodies and schools, including Burnley College. She is happy to forward copies to all committee members for dissemination.

(e) CM noted that she has recently updated BAAS’s contact addresses and the details of BAAS awards on ASLIB, which is an online directory of charities, and she also updated details on the Directory of Information Sources in the UK.

(f) CM has been invited to a reception on October 16 at Winfield House to mark the centenary of Alistair Cooke’s birth. She will attend on behalf of BAAS.

(g) CM noted that she has written to Farrar, Straus and Giroux about obtaining an endorsement for American Studies from Tom Wolfe. She has yet to have a reply.

6. Treasurer’s Business
(a) The Treasurer circulated a report to the committee noting that the bank accounts (as at 25/06/08) were as follows: General Deposit, £13,390.06; Short Term Awards, account closed; Current, £2,348.90 Education and Development, £5,354.92; Conference, £969.96; making a total of £22,063.83. The amount in the RBS Jersey is still to be clarified and the US Dollar Account has $8853.73.

(b) TS drew attention to the fact that the Short Term Awards account has been closed and noted that the conference account will be used again for conference expenses. In the past, the conference surplus has gone into the General Account rather than into the Conference Account. The Conference Account will be used in the future so there is a clear sense of the balance being carried over from year to year.

(c) TS reported that fully paid up members for 2008 currently stand at 545 including 195 postgraduates. This compares favourably to the position last year, which was 481 members (with 172 postgraduates). When those who haven’t so far updated their Standing Orders are included, the numbers rise to 644 (245 postgraduate) compared to 550 (with 192 postgraduates) in September 2007. TS noted that there had been ten more new members since June but added that new members tended to join at the beginning of the new calendar year.

(d) TS discussed PAYPAL, which continues to be problematic. In short, PAYPAL will not work with the BAAS Deposit Account as it has previously been used under Graham Thompson’s name. TS has allocated the Current Account to PAYPAL and is awaiting a code to begin operating. TS reiterated that it has been very, very difficult to contact PAYPAL and is looking into alternatives. As soon as the code arrives she will be able to draw out funds. In the meantime, TS suggested that we highlight the benefits of using the more straightforward Standing Order membership option.

(e) TS also noted that the Overseas Accounts paperwork is almost finished. The paperwork is in hand with the officers. TS raised the resolution that we should continue to use our RBS Jersey account. This was passed unanimously in favour by the Exec.

(f) TS has thinned out the Treasurer’s paperwork and would like to send materials to the BAAS Archive. RE will confirm details of the archivist but asked that materials will be thinned down. TS will thin as much as possible but needs to keep information relating to the Charities Commission. RE suggested that much of the material in the BAAS Archive may not be of interest to future scholars.

(g) DE raised the issue of mileage allowance, which is currently set at .40p/mile. He suggested that this could be tapered for big journeys to bring the cost down. HM proposed bringing the rate down to .25p/mile after 150 miles. This was unanimously agreed by the Exec.

(h) TS noted that she has asked the accountants to re-quote for the BAAS annual accounts job which at £1800 seems a little high. She will report on this at the next meeting.

7. Development Subcommittee (WK reporting)
(a) WK noted that the Embassy has agreed to award BAAS £12,880 for conference and awards costs.

(b) WK noted that the name of Conference Support Award has been changed to Conference Organisation Support Award, specifically to ‘support the organisation and running of conferences, colloquia and/or conference-related activity’. The Development Subcom suggested that BAAS award funds to Kathryn Gray to pay for a visiting speaker’s costs at the South West American Studies Forum (£300). WK also received an award bid from Alan Rice and Fionnghuala Sweeney to fund a keynote speaker for the Liberating Sojourn 2 conference (£300 bid). Both applications were supported by the Exec. WK to inform the applicants.

(c) INTUTE (Oxford based project) has asked BAAS to develop a website and are offering £900 to be paid directly to 4-6 people who might be able to develop and run the project. WK will write to Dr Bella Adams at the ASRC and ask her to help identify suitable candidates for this project.

(d) WK also raised the issue of the BAAS Honorary Fellowship Award (retirees). IS and IB have worked out the wording for this award which indicates that BAAS Honorary Fellows are expected to have made an ‘outstanding contribution to the American Studies community and research’. Applications (CV and a two-page supporting document) are to come from colleagues (no self-nominations) with an explanation for nomination by 31 December. Winners will be awarded a lifetime membership of BAAS and the results will be announced in Nottingham in April. A debate arose regarding the number of applications, and it was decided that there would be two/three awards per year (depending on the number of nominations) with up to six awards in the launch year to increase publicity. Nominations would go through the Awards Subcom and the Exec would look at a shortlist in January with a round-robin email in advance of the January meeting. WK and IS to coordinate the nominations and email discussions. TS noted that the free membership would entail the cost of JAS. The Exec agreed that Honarary Fellows would receive the lifetime retired membership (which does not include the JAS subscription).

8. Postgraduate Business (MC reporting)
(a) MC reported that he had contacted the PG Conference organising committee at Exeter for conference reports which will be included in the next edition of ASIB and the EAAS newsletter.

(b) MC sent out a call for applicants to hold the BAAS PG conference in 2009 and has received interest from Tom Wright and Rebecca Weiss at Wolfson College, Cambridge.

(c) MC was asked to contact the EAAS Secretary General Jenel Virden regarding a list of EAAS PG representatives. As no such list exists he is putting one together.

(d) MC discussed PG communication and interaction which might possibly include Podcasts or regional meetings. The Exec agreed that a more viable way forward is for PGs to have more of a presence in ASIB. In future, a list of completed PhDs is to be published in ASIB (part of Members’ News), MC will write a PG Business report for inclusion, and other ways of increasing PG presence in ASIB are under consideration. WK raised the possibility of using Facebook but BAAS will not officially endorse this.

(e) MC noted that advertising for the Exeter BAAS PG conference had been disseminated.

9. Publications Subcommittee (MH reporting)
(a) BRRAM (KM sent a written report).
Papers tabled by Ken Morgan in advance of the meeting.

‘The American Correspondence of Arthur C. Murray with Franklin D. Roosevelt’ has now been released on eight microfilm reels. Dr Tony McCulloch’s introduction has been completed.

‘The Manuscripts of Samuel Martin…,’ with an introduction by Dr Natalie Zacek, is ready for release. There have been complications with this title, stemming from the quality of the microfilms produced by the British Library. This release will therefore be accompanied by this statement: “while the text of a number of the images on this microfilm publication are illegible, they have been reviewed by the British Library’s Imaging Services Studio and adjudged of the best quality they were capable of producing.” This title will accordingly be published at a lower price.

KM has written a short article on the BRRAM series for inclusion in the next edition of American Studies in Britain.

The librarian at Rhodes House has now agreed to off-site filming of their USPG Canadian Papers. RV will endeavour to find an appropriate editor for this title, but, failing that, we will release the papers as they stand. The papers will appear in three parts, hopefully beginning in the spring of 2009: a) New Brunswick and Newfoundland; b) Quebec and Toronto; and c) General files. (N.B. There is an existing BRRAM title that covers the Nova Scotia material in these papers.)

RV and MAP are still preparing an online resource drawn from existing BRRAM titles on transatlantic slavery and the slave trade. Further details to follow.

KM has contacted Ms Jill Furlong at the University of London Archives, in order to arrange a visit to discuss possible BRRAM titles from their collections.

KM has written to Lord Howard to enquire whether his family will grant permission to prepare a BRRAM title on the papers of Sir Esmé Howard at the Cumbria Record Office. This Anglo-American diplomatic material includes Howard’s period as British Ambassador in Washington DC in the 1920s.

(b) Edinburgh University Press (EUP)
Celeste-Marie Bernier’s African American Visual Arts has appeared, and has been co-published by the University of North Carolina Press.

Kasia Boddy’s The American Short Story and Theresa Saxon’s North American Theatre are in preparation.

Other authors are preparing proposals in a number of areas, including a history of crime and punishment in the US, the US/Mexican border in American history and culture, and American popular music. The editors are consulting with other possible authors and published a request for proposals for new titles appeared in issue 96 of American Studies in Britain.

Nicola Ramsey from EUP supplied sales figures of published titles in this series. These are available on request.

(c) Journal of American Studies
MH noted that at the JAS Editorial Board meeting there had been discussions about raising the number of JAS issues from three to four issues per year. The BAAS Exec agreed it would be happy to move to 4 issues a year in 2010, although the Subcommittee would want to explore the costing impact of this on BAAS subscriptions. MH to discuss with Martine Walsh, SC and SL. MW to be invited to the January meeting of the Publications Subcom.

At the suggestion of the JAS Editorial Board and CUP, the terms of office of the Editor and Associate Editor were reconsidered. MW at CUP is concerned about the cost involved in a three-year editorial tenureship. The Exec ratified the 4-year term for Editor and Associate Editor, stressing that the terms of both editorships should be kept in sync.

The Exec welcomed the news of the digital back catalogue of JAS being made available at the end of 2008 and the online developments as outlined by the Associate Editor at the JAS Editorial Board Meeting.

The suggestion of a second Associate Editor was discussed at length. Again, this was a matter which had been raised at the JAS Editorial Board meeting. The Exec decided it would like to consider the idea of a second Associate Editor quite carefully and not rush into a decision on this. If a second Associate Editor was brought in it was felt this should not been until the end of 2010: i.e. at the end of the current terms of office. Questions were raised about the status of the second Associate Editors, the division of labour between Associate Editors, and the terms of office.

Editorial Board decisions:
(i) The Exec was very happy to confirm the new Editorial Board appointments of Richard Crockatt (UEA) and Jane Dailey (Chicago) from 1 January 2009, plus the second terms of Janet Beer and Shelley Fisher Fishkin.

(ii) The Publications Subcommittee drew up a shortlist of 5 names for the additional Editorial Board member in Women’s History.

MH to initiate an email vote between relevant members to be taken to the next Exec meeting in January 2009.

It was felt that JAS should be represented whenever possible at BAAS meetings, especially as the Publications Subcommittee only meets 3 times a year. To this end, it was proposed that the Associate Editor is made an ex officio member of the subcom and should deputise for the Editor when needed. CM to amend the Standing Orders accordingly and write officially to SL, welcoming him to the committee. MH to contact Martine Walsh to see if she can attend the Publications subcom meeting in January.

MH to raise the possibility of extending the JAS Editorial Board with MW.

(d) American Studies in Britain (ASIB)
Email report sent in advance by Alison Kelly.

The publication of issue 99 of ASIB had been delayed by two and a half weeks by delays in production of RAS. This matter was resolved soon after the subcom had met.

AK noted in her report that joint mailing of ASIB and RAS is desirable both financially and in terms of institutional identity, but not so vital as to warrant significant postponement of either publication. The Publications Subcom agreed that in future ASIB and RAS should only be mailed jointly when production of both is on schedule. This was ratified by the Exec.

AK suggested that the copy deadline for both publications be set at 28 August 2009 with a view to production in the first half of September and distribution on 14 or 21 September 2009. AK to discuss schedules with Matthew Shaw before publication of the spring 09 ASIB so as to be able to announce the copy deadline and anticipated publication date of the autumn issue.

AK reported that the lighter paper in ASIB 99 has had the desired effect of making the newsletter lie flatter, but noted that folding and trimming were uneven. This will be double checked in the spring 09 issue

(e) US Studies Online
There was a shortlist of three applicants for the New Editor of US Studies Online.

In a very tight competition, it was decided that Felicity Donohoe (Glasgow) would be the new Editor, for a 2-year term in the first instance.

MH will contact Felicity Donohoe to notify her of the decision and to discuss the BAAS Postgraduate Conference in Exeter. MH will also contact the other shortlisted candidates.

(f) BAAS Website
All is working smoothly – nothing new to report.

10. Conference Subcommittee (SM reporting)
(a) SM reported on Nottingham progress. Proposals are coming in already from all over the world. Publicity has been posted out (CMB has been very accommodating with negotiations on the poster). Changes have been made to the booking form. The full conference fee has gone up to £300. Everything is in place and a programme committee is operating. It is hoped that a draft programme will be ready by mid November, following a programme meeting on 22 October. Other associations have been invited and RE reiterated that it would be worth pressing these groups to submit panel proposals. CMB is working on Abstracts Online and pursuing links with publishers.

(b) SM noted a £4000 balance from the Edinburgh conference. Edinburgh accounts are now being closed.

(c) SM wondered again about the question of an honorarium for the conference organiser. TS to look into the history of this and will report back on this in January.

(d) HM noted that she has written to HoDs at Nottingham and UEA regarding the duties of the conference organiser.

(e) All is in place for UEA conference 8-11 April but SM noted that BAAS needs to keep an eye on the accommodation, which is currently a combination of campus-based and town centre hotels (with a 24-hour bus link). TRS will endeavour to have the poster (with cfp) ready for the Nottingham conference. He may also be in a position to announce some of the plenary speakers.

(f) In terms of future venues and dates, the following are now confirmed: UCLAN 2011 (14-17 April); Manchester 2012 (12-15 April); Exeter 2013 (18-21 April); Birmingham 2014 (confirmed and conference secretary is Sara Wood).

(g) SM raised the issue of possibly placing funding limits on plenary speakers, for instance placing a cap of £750 for the JAS speaker. SM also questioned whether JAS might be asked to cover the JAS speaker’s expenses. HM to write to MW and ask JAS to review their level of support.

(h) SM also discussed the issue of PG subsidies for the conference. Currently BAAS has £5000 to subsidise BAAS PGs. However, given the 195 PGs in the Association, this amount is clearly not enough. SM wondered whether it was worth asking the Embassy for a little more money towards conference support. This is to be discussed further by the Development Subcom. WK to lead on this.

(i) SM noted raised the issue of future EAAS Conference dates (Dublin dates are confirmed for 26-29 March 2010), asking if we can be informed as soon as possible to avoid potential clashes with the BAAS Annual Conference. PD will raise this matter at the next EAAS meeting.

11. Awards Subcommittee (IS reporting)
(a) IS briefly discussed the Honorary Fellows. See Development Subcom report, point (d).

(b) IS noted that poster for the various BAAS and Ambassador’s awards are ready to go out.

(c) TAship info has been passed on to the Secretary. This includes some good testimonials for website. CM to coordinate for publication on the website.

(d) IS will write to various members of the Exec to chair/convene judging panels for the awards.

12. Libraries and Resources Subcommittee (DE reporting)
(a) DE announced that the BLARs journal, Resources for American Studies, had successfully applied to the Embassy for funds for the next edition of the journal, which will be a special issue on Cinema.

(b) DE noted that BLARs will offer a panel at the Nottingham conference.

(c) DE also announced that the BLARs committee was now fuilly constituted, including Theresa Saxon as the BAAS representative. He suggested that Dr Bella Adams of the ASRC be invited to join BLARs. This was agreed by the Exec.

13. EAAS (PD reporting)
(a) PD reported that he wrote a piece for the EAAS newsletter, with assistance from various others, documenting changes to the BAAS committee, advertising the BAAS conference, PG conference, and also advertising forthcoming Eccles Centre and ISA events. He has circulated information about EAAS to via the BAAS mailbase (including information regarding ASPeers) and through the APG.

(b) PD has represented EAAS and BAAS through interviews on the elections for News 24, Sky, BBC Wales and gave a talk at Edinburgh Festival.

(c) PD noted that the membership would receive information about the EAAS conference in good time via the mailbase.

14. Any Other Business
(a) PD noted various Eccles events including a talk in memory of Alistair Cooke by Martin Kettle, and Steven Sacker; a discussion of black writers in Paris; an elections event; Congress to Campus; and the APG colloquium.

(b) DE noted that the Jack Kerouac On the Road scroll would be at Birmingham from December through to January. Admission is free and DE would be happy to lead groups around.

15. Date of next meeting

The next Executive Committee meeting will be held at the 17 January at MMU.
Subcommittees will meet at 10.30am.

Dr. Catherine Morley
email: catherine.morley@leicester.ac.uk
Office Phone: (0116) 223 1068

BAAS Executive Committee Meeting: June 27, 2008

Minutes of the 255th meeting of the Executive Committee, held at University of Manchester on June 27, 2008.

1. Present

H Macpherson (Chair), C Morley (Secretary) T Saxon (Treasurer), I Bell, M
Collins, W Kaufman, A Lawson, S MacLachlan, I Scott and M Whalan.

Apologies: P Blackburn, S Castillo, P Davies, R Ellis, M Halliwell, G Lewis, and R Mason.

2. Minutes of the Previous Meeting

After minor corrections, these were accepted as a true record and will now go on the website.

3. Matters Arising

None

Action List Review
The Secretary asked the Exec to comment on the status of their Action List duties.

(a) HM to report on the meeting of American Studies HoDs in her Chair’s Business.
(b) IS noted that discussion regarding Exec members applying for BAAS awards would arise in his Awards report. He also noted that awards publicity has been discussed amongst members of the Awards subcom. Information on past TAs is still being tracked down and will be discussed at length under Awards Business.
(c) WK reported that the Exeter PG conference bid to the US Embassy had been successful. He is in the process of dealing with other business since taking over the role of Development Chair from Richard Crockatt.

4. Chair’s Business

(a) The Chair began her report by welcoming new members of the Committee: Michael Collins, Mark Whalan, Robert Mason and Andrew Lawson. She also extended congratulations to those who were re-elected at the AGM: Catherine Morley (in her first full term as Secretary); Will Kaufman (as executive committee member and Chair of the Development Subcom); Theresa Saxon, who has been elected Treasurer to fulfil Graham Thompson’s unexpired term of office (1 year). She also noted that Martin Halliwell was elected as Vice Chair by the Committee.

(b) Announcements
HM noted that Jacqueline Fear-Segal has won the American Studies Network book prize for her book White Man’s Club (University of Nebraska Press, 2007).

She also noted that the Times Higher Education (THE) recently announced that Jude Davies won the Arthur Miller Prize, which was awarded at the BAAS annual banquet in Edinburgh.

HM reported that Professor Matthew Jones (Nottingham) has been appointed by the Prime Minister as a Cabinet Office official historian, and commissioned to write the history of the Chevaline programme. Chevaline was the name for a secret British effort to improve the Polaris submarine-launched ballistic missiles procured from the United States as a result of the Nassau Agreement of 1962 between Kennedy and Macmillan. Initiated by the Heath government in the early 1970s, the Chevaline programme was designed to enable Polaris to penetrate improving Soviet anti-missile defences, and so sustain the credibility of Britain’s nuclear deterrent, but soon ran into major problems leading to spiralling costs and delays. Chevaline finally entered service in 1982, but not before the revelation of its existence by the Thatcher government in 1980 prompted a wave of public and parliamentary criticism of the poor management and lack of accountability of a programme which involved final expenditure of over £1 billion. During the course of his four-year assignment to the project, Professor Jones will have access to all relevant UK government documents, and work on archival sources in the United States, as well as examining the private papers of key ministers and officials and will carry out interviews. The project will cover such areas as Whitehall policymaking, Anglo-American relations, and the central issue of why successive British governments considered it essential to maintain an ‘independent’ nuclear deterrent and the steps they were prepared to take to ensure its credibility.

(c) Correspondence
HM was sent a copy of the American Studies Resource Centre annual report (circulated).

(d) Invitations
HM attended the Regional Awards Winner reception and dinner for the AHRC on 11 June. She was unable to attend the subject association meeting (CM attended on behalf of BAAS and circulated a report) or the regional meeting itself. HM noted that Professor Shearer West, the new Director of Research at the AHRC, has confirmed attendance at the Nottingham Conference.

HM was invited on behalf of BAAS to attend James Dunkerley’s leaving reception at the ISA but was unable to attend. She was also unable to attend a Fulbright function.

HM will, on behalf of BAAS, be attending the annual 4th of July Barbeque at Winfield House on 3 July.

(e) Consultations and Activities
ERIH (European Reference Index for the Humanities): As noted in the April meeting, the Literature list was supposed to be in place by the end of October, but it was only recently published; it runs to 20 pages (circulated, available online at the ERIH website and attached alongside these minutes). HM noted that the Journal of American Studies is deemed to rate an A, but there are anomalies. American Literary History rates an A, as does American Literary Realism, American Literary Scholarship, American Quarterly, and Amerikastudien. However, American Literature rates only a B (Canadian Literature rates an A, however). Comparative American Studies rates a B as does Symbiosis and the European Journal of American Culture. BAAS will suggest that the editors of these journals lobby on behalf of their journal.

BAAS has put forward names for the ERIH panels as requested: for history, Simon Newman; for Literature, Graham Thompson; for Film and Media, Mark Jancovich; and for Interdisciplinary Studies, Martin Halliwell.

HM reported that she is seeking an update as to whether or not the BLARs subcom was able to respond to the US patents consultation: she has yet to hear back from Dick Ellis on this one, but BAAS didn’t see any problems with it.

HM reported to the Committee on the Heads of American Studies lunch at the ISA, London, Tuesday 24th June. There was a good turnout at the meeting, with 18 people attending and representing a range of institutions. The meeting discussed recruitment, links with schools and colleges, and research post-RAE. There was overall disquiet felt over falling student numbers though the information was mixed.

IB reiterated that the annual meeting should be a regular event to maintain a feeling of solidarity amongst colleagues. He mentioned the importance of sharing good innovative programmes, such as the Working in America programme at Liverpool John Moores. IB also mentioned the American Studies League tables (Guardian, Times and Independent) and noted the wide high performance in American Studies programmes.

It was noted at the meeting that the AHRC Block Grant programme will work against the interdisciplinarity inherent in American Studies. HM noted that BAAS has lobbied hard on this.

HM noted that when she raised issues about the problems with the Block Grant programme and interdisciplinarity, she was told that institutions need to stress the interdisciplinarity of their programmes (though this does not seem to be part of the official guidance). HM noted the need for more and more Peer Review College members to cope with the new systems and registered her concerns over the AHRC’s plans.

(f)Miscellaneous
HM has been contacted by various postgraduates seeking advice and guidance on publication opportunities, which she responded to.

HM has had further discussions with Penny Egan at the Fulbright Commission but has made clear that BAAS cannot sponsor a Visiting Professor, though we would be happy to be involved in any interviewing or assessing of nominations.

HM reported on the issue of publicity for Nottingham conference – an approved advert in the TLS has gone through, but she reiterated that we need to ensure good journalists are present at the conference, and also that we have a press release relating to the prize winners.

5. Secretary’s Business

(a) CM noted that, as usual, her main role revolved around information flow. She regularly passed information on to Alison Kelly, Clare Elliot and Graham Thompson for ASIB, the mailbase and website. She helped direct people with research and grant queries to the appropriate sources; she has also dealt with enquiries from the 12-Yard TV production company regarding a UK-version of ‘Who Dares Wins’; fielded enquires for fellowship opportunities and course information from many academics and students (both postgraduate and undergraduate); and has updated the Charities Commission information with details of the new committee members. CM (along with HM and TS) has also been contacted by various postgraduates seeking advice and guidance on publication opportunities, which she responded to.

(b) CM wrote to the Embassy with an update of the new committee members and structure and wrote to welcome all the new committee members (with details of their Trustee status).

(c) On behalf of BAAS, CM attended the AHRC’s Meeting with the Subject Associations in May and circulated a full report electronically.

(d) On behalf of BAAS, CM sent cards to Richard King (on the occasion of his retirement), to James Dunkerley (stepping down as Director of the ISA), to Paul Giles (stepping down as Director of the Rothermere American Institute), and to Phil Davies (on his retirement from DeMontfort). She also attended a luncheon to mark the end of Paul Giles’s directorship of the RAI.

(e) CM noted that she has been contacted by various American Studies colleagues requesting lists of American Studies departments (always in connection with conference advertising). As she is not in possession of such a list, she raised the issue of what BAAS’s policy was on this matter and whether if might be worthwhile compiling such a list. It was generally agreed that such a list was unnecessary as BAAS was always happy to advertise conferences and other academic events via the website and the mailbase. Subsequent to the meeting PD reminded CM that lists of all American Studies programmes are easily accessible on the Eccles Centre’s webpages.
Anyone who enquires can be advised to go to
http://www.bl.uk/eccles/amstudiesug.html – for undergraduate programmes
http://www.bl.uk/eccles/amstudiespg.html – for taught p/grad
http://www.bl.uk/eccles/amstudiescanada.html – for Canadian studies

(f) CM reported that she had sent out a call to the Exec requesting a committee member to take up the position of BLARs. DE and TS have been in discussion about this and TS is to take up this vacant BLARs position.

(g) CM to update the BAAS leaflet with new committee details.

(h) CM wrote a press release on the BAAS Awards for the THE – not published due to timing. This will be ready to go out next year.

6. Treasurer’s Business

(a) The Treasurer circulated a report to the committee noting that the bank accounts (as at 25/06/08) were as follows: General Deposit, £24,726.70; Short Term Awards, £4,732.91; Current, £18,350.90 (with cheques amounting to approximately £14,000 due to arrive); Education and Development, £5,084.57; Conference, £969.96; making a total of £53,865.04. The amount in the RBS Jersey is to be clarified and the US Dollar Account has $7,371.90.

(b) TS reported that fully paid up members for 2008 currently stand at 535 including 193 postgraduates. This compares favourably to the position last year, which was 462 members (with 163 postgraduates). When those who haven’t so far updated their Standing Orders are included, the numbers rise to 631 (254 postgraduate) compared to 531 (with 183 postgraduate) in June 2007.

(c) TS noted that the accounts have now been signed off and returned to the accountants. The Charity Commission Annual Return has also been completed.

(d) TS discussed the transfer of accounts from GT. The main bank account has now been transferred, except for some minor information which she is awaiting to enable online banking. Until that is received, which should be the week ending 4th July 2008, she will continue telephone banking.

(e) TS noted that the main problem in the transfer of accounts though has been with Paypal which is very inflexible and seems unable to deal with the change of personnel. Because the account was registered to GT it refuses to register TS as it can only accommodate a single registered user. TS suggested that the solution to this problem might be to assign the Current Account to Paypal, and then organise regular transfers to the General Deposit Account. However, because we pay bank charges for each transaction, this is not ideal.

(f) TS also brought the issue of dormant bank accounts to the attention of the Committee. The only recent transaction on the Education and Development Account has been an interest payment and there has been no activity at all on the Conference Account since May 2007. SM, HM and CM thought it best to reactivate the conference account for conference surplus and the conference float, but merge the Education and Development account which is no longer in use. HM suggested going back to NS, JB and GT and ask if they felt it best to keep the separate accounts and if not then to amalgamate accounts. TS to report back on this for the next meeting of the Exec and the Conference subcom.

(g) TS raised the issue of subscriptions, querying how we decide when these are to be increased. HM noted that 2010 is the earliest that we can raise the subscription. It will have to be raised at the 2009 election (advertised with six weeks notice).

(h) She also discussed the issue of the disposal of old files and correspondence in accordance with Inland Revenue and Charity Commission guidelines. HM suggested that she check the Charity Commission guidelines, discard unnecessary items and thereafter liaise with CM on sending some items to the BAAS Archives at Birmingham.

7. Development Subcommittee (WK reporting)

(a) WK noted a brief issue on Conference Support Award: there seemed to be some confusion as to whether this was to support individuals or organisations (it is to assist in the organisation of conferences). It was decided to rename the award for clarity. WK to lead on this.

(b) WK noted that DE had sent him a report on the CD rom, discussing the possibility of conducting a survey to assess impact. WK to forward this report to CM for Secretary’s records.

(c) WK noted that the BAAS graduate survey has been collated and sent on the GT for the web (the survey is anonymous). WK is to write to American Studies heads and get the names of high-profile American Studies graduates and possibly secure a blurb endorsement to post on the web. IB reminded the committee that Alex Salmond has an MA in American Studies and should therefore be approached. CM to write to Tom Wolfe’s publishers, Farrar, Straus and Giroux, about the possibility of attaining such a blurb.

(d) WK raised the issue of procedure involved with the award of conference funding. HM confirmed that the correct procedure was for WK to email successful applicants, copying Treasurer. The successful recipient is obliged to submit report to WK. The submission of a report is crucial as BAAS needs a paper trail for our accounts and for the Charities Commission.

(e) WK noted that there had been 4 funding requests for funding for conference organisation:
Trevor Burnard at Warwick requested funds for the 2nd biennial EAAH in Venice. Professor Burnard requested £300 to fund the visiting speaker Professor Peter Onaf (current Harmsworth professor). It was agreed to recommend that this conference be offered the £300 they requested, but that BAAS stipulate that it is for the support of postgraduates, rather than to fund the visiting speaker’s travel to Venice.

Phil Davies at the Eccles Centre requested funds to support the Congress to Campus event. It was agreed to recommend support of this annual event to the sum of £300.

WK also received a request from Mark Storey for support of a PG conference at the University of Nottingham: New Perspectives on the American 19th Century. It was agreed to recommend support of this annual event to the sum of £300 for a postgraduate fee waiver (30 PGs to attend for free).

WK received a request from Brian Ward for support of the BAAS Postgraduate Conference 2008. It was agreed to recommend support of this annual event to the sum of £300.

(f) WK noted that it is perhaps worth strengthening/reiterating the clause regarding allocation of funds in support of PG attendance on the Conference Support Award application form. WK to lead on this.

8. Postgraduate Business (MC reporting)

(a) MC began by thanking JM for her hard work as PG representative and for the successful handover of information.

(b) MC reported that the postgraduate conference had successfully bid to the US Embassy for money for the conference. The deadline for the call for papers was 30 June. He will send out a call for the next year’s hosts (2009) on the mailbase and in ASIB as well as at the conference. HM suggested that he got JM’s postgraduate email list too. She also suggested that MC contact JM about the EAAS postgraduate reps list.

(c) MC reported that he had been put on the Nottingham BAAS conference subcommittee to represent PG students at the BAAS Annual Conference.

(d) MC noted that Rebecca Cobby (Nottingham) had started up a new Facebook site, “International American Studies Postgraduates” which had 97 members from 31 institutions. He used the site to advertise both the PG and the annual BAAS conferences and he will inform other PGs of the site. It was seen as a good thing, though for obvious reasons BAAS would not be linked to it directly or be seen to sponsor it.

9. Publications Subcommittee (CM reporting on behalf of MH)

(a) BRRAM (KM sent a written report).
Dr Tony McCulloch has been delayed in writing introductions for two titles: “The American Correspondence of Arthur C. Murray with Franklin D. Roosevelt” and “The Canadian Papers of the 4th Earl of Minto.” However, it is anticipated that he will be able to complete these introductions over the summer.

There will be a delay in the publication of “The Manuscripts of Samuel Martin…” because the British Library has supplied unusable duplicate negatives from microfilms originally done in the 1960s. Roderic Vassie is in contact with the British Library about how to resolve this matter.

The microfilm reels of the Goulburn Papers have been sent to the Surrey History Centre, Woking. Professor Ken Morgan’s introductory guide is available online on the MAP website.

No further progress has occurred with the USPG Papers at Rhodes House Library, Oxford. MAP are still awaiting the agreement of the Bodleian Library to off-site filming.

Roderic Vassie and KM have discussed the possibility of an online resource drawn from existing BRRAM titles on transatlantic slavery and the slave trade. Further information will be presented at the next sub-committee meeting.

Over the summer KM will be visiting the House of Lords Record Office and the University of London Archives to identify future projects for the BRRAM series.

KM will submit a brief article on the BRRAM series for a forthcoming edition of ASIB.

(b)Edinburgh University Press (EUP)
CS sent a brief written report. Figures and details below were supplied by Ms Nicola Ramsay at EUP.

The current title in production is Celeste Marie-Bernier’s African American Visual Arts which is to be published July 2008 (co-publication with University of North Carolina Press: taking 250 hardbacks and 2500 paperbacks).

Titles under contract include Kasia Boddy’s The American Short Story since 1950 which is to be published September 09 (ts due September 08) and Theresa Saxon’s North American Theatre to be published February 10 (ts due December 08).

New areas to cover include: TV; Slavery in the 19th Century (Revolution – Civil War) (Carol and Simon to consider possible authors); Immigration (Carol and Simon to consider possible authors); The Press (Carol to ask Head of Journalism for view/ ideas for authors); Sport in America(n Culture); The Cold War (politics, culture, society); Foreign Policy (post-45/ post-Cold War); 1st World War; Contemporary America (Post 1960s); Literature – sub-genres (poetry, drama, crime fiction, etc.); American Film/ Cinema/ Hollywood; America at War; African Americans.

MH to invite CS and SN to possibly advertise a Call for Authors (in relation to the above titles) in the next edition of ASIB.

(c) Journal of American Studies
The Committee happily ratified an extension to Janet Beer’s and Shelley Fisher Fishkin’s terms of office.

CM raised the issue of creating a position on the board in Women’s History. This was discussed as SC had reported that the journal has been receiving many articles in this area in recent months. The Committee is happy to create a position in Women’s History (if the constitution permits – SC and MH to check with Martine Walsh at CUP) and will come up with a long/shortlist for the September meeting. MH and SC to lead on this.

The Committee also discussed the issue of whether retired scholars should be considered for the Board. After much debate, with colleagues discussing the merits of opening the board to younger colleagues and the benefit of having more senior board members, it was agreed that the standing of the person concerned should have more weight than their position. However, it was stressed by colleagues that we do need to think about intellectual weight and target only distinguished people with an active research profile.

(d) American Studies in Britain (ASIB)
CM reported that a good deal of material for ASIB 99 is already in. AK will chase outstanding items in advance of the copy deadline of 15 August. At present these include:
an update on EUP/BAAS series;
an announcement concerning a new editor for US Studies Online;
EAAS news;
details of Eccles Centre activities;
details of the 2008 postgraduate conference in Exeter;
an update on BAAS Membership of Committees;
an update on BRRAM.
Additionally, MH intends to supply a report on his Founders Award trip.

CM noted that AK’s new distribution company has proved very satisfactory and will be used again – typesetting and printing will continue at Oxford Brookes.

CM noted the issue of paper-weight (curling copy): apparently AK has discussed this with the printer Sally Bourton. According to Bourton, the way forward is to lighten the paper (to take effect from the publication of the next issue).

CM also reported that Bob Pomfret’s typesetting costs are set to increase. Labour previously was set at £20/hour. This is now to increase to £25/hour under instructions from Brookes. So the next issue will cost approx £200 to typeset, compared with £167.60 for the last issue. AK did discuss the possibility of moving the typesetting to a different company but there are numerous advantages to keeping it with Bob Pomfret, the most important being that he has now created the template for ASIB (a time consuming and costly process). The Committee agreed that Bob Pomfret should remain typesetter.

The Committee discussed the question of running an obituary for Dr Robert Harrison (d. May 07). This is to go ahead. Subsequent to the meeting Tim Woods at Aberystwyth forwarded copy to AK.

AK will accept copy for ASIB 99 until 15 August.

(e) US Studies Online
Issue 12 has just been published. It showcases some of the best papers from the Manchester postgraduate conference last November. EB is especially pleased with the images for Henry Knight’s paper on California Citrus labels:
http://http://www.baas.ac.uk/resources/usstudiesonline/default.asp

For Issue 13, EB has currently got eight papers in the system: two in the editing stage, five being redrafted, and two currently with referees.

EB was unable to make the Edinburgh BAAS conference, but adverts encouraging
submissions have gone up on the UPenn site and in ASIB (Spring 2008), and will hopefully stimulate interest from both UK and US postgrads.

EB has standardized a report form to be sent out to the referee with every article
(circulated). Referees choose one of four recommendations when responding, which makes the outcome clearer for everyone. The Committee endorsed this action.

EB’s two-year term as editor of US Studies Online is due to come to an end in August.
EB has drafted an advert to go into the next edition of ASIB and to go out via the mail-base. After minor amendments EB’s advert was approved. CM to forward advert to AK and Clare Elliott. MH to write to EB requesting that she maintains the role of Editor until a new candidate is appointed in the Autumn.

EB sent a report to MH in which she mentioned future improvements to US Studies
Online and recommended the introduction of a third yearly issue. Such a move would, according to EB, increase the opportunities for postgrads to publish with the journal, but it would need to be supported by increased advertising to raise awareness of the journal. Also, a regular deadline for submissions may be a way to stimulate more interest. The first of these items was discussed by the Committee and, as before, rejected on the basis that there were not enough incoming submissions to warrant a third issue. Of course, this is open to review if the situation changes. The issue of regular deadlines will be raised with the new Editor.

EB’s report also drew attention to the fact that an increasing percentage of submissions
are initially rejected, with a request for resubmission (major changes needed). In itself, this can be very useful for the author but it does mean that the editor needs to be conscientious in encouraging resubmissions from these authors. Therefore, the incoming Editor will need to be aware of the necessity for sensitivity in dealing with authors but also of the very ‘hands-on’ nature of the position.

Decision regarding the new editor to be announced/decided in September meeting or shortly thereafter. MH to lead on this.

(f) BAAS Website
Currently down – efforts have been made to contact the Webster but he is away until 30 June.
Subsequently rectified.

10. Conference Subcommittee (SM reporting)

(a) SM reported that the Conference subcom has reviewed the timetable for the annual conference organisation and thought it best to bring it forward as it is increasingly clear that the organiser and the subcom need to start thinking about the conference at least two years in advance.

(b) SM noted that CMB submitted a report on the progress of the Nottingham conference – publicity seems to be in hand, the call for papers has been widely publicised and the poster is being designed (plenary speakers will be listed on the poster). Thus far, the conference has been advertised on both the BAAS and the EAAS websites. CMB has sent email adverts to the following organisations: BRANCH, Southern Historical Association, H-Net, ENCS (European Network for Cinema Studies), H-Film, Cinema-L, Screen-L, MeCCSA (Media, Communications, and Cultural Studies Association), SCMS (Society for Cinema and Media Studies), OAH (Organization of American Historians), The Mellon Program, the University of Pennsylvania, European Association for American Studies, American Studies Association. Emails have also been sent to the American Studies national associations in the following countries: Korea, South Africa, Canada, Turkey, Israel, Brazil, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Spain and Switzerland. CMB will also write to BRANCH, OEAH, TSA and HOTCUS to see if they would like to submit a panel.

(c) TS suggested having a poster in advance as a cfp and then later as an advertisement with the plenary information. This will be taken forward for future conferences.

(d) SM also reported that the accommodation for Nottingham 2008 is booked in Hugh Stewart and Cripps Halls of Residence which are right next to one another. All meals will be held in one of the halls and the late bar is booked. The first reception will be combined with the American Prints: From Hopper to Pollock exhibition at the Arts Centre, University Park Campus. The reception will be hosted in such a way as to enable delegates to wander around the exhibition. The second reception will be held at Nottingham Castle and is booked. The third reception will be held in the Portland Building which is less glamorous than the castle but will be close to the banquet which will be held in the top floor ball room. Entertainment for the banquet will be provided by Dr Jazz. Entertainment and all reception venues are now booked. The plenary lectures for the conference will be delivered by Professor Janet Beer (Eccles lecture), Professor George Lipsitz (JAS lecture) and Professor Alison Graham (Nottingham lecture).

(e) SM noted that an advertisement for the conference was placed in the TLS on 20 June. The primary aim of this advert was to raise the profile of the organisation.

(f) SM reported that the numbers of attendees for the conference is a potentially problematic issue as no venues cater for more than 250 people. SM feels that we should not worry about numbers for accommodation as delegates will be informed that they are not guaranteed accommodation, rather delegates will have to be registered in the first 200 to be guaranteed accommodation. In terms of cost, the complete conference fee looks set to be approximately £295.

(g) At this point, SM pointed out that items which need to be finalised include the poster, the booking form, the automated response system and abstracts online.

(h) In terms of future conferences, UEA is secure for 2010 and the preliminary organisation is now in place and UCLAN is committed to hosting the conference in 2011. IS is to start running some checks for the 2012 conference at Manchester and will have some secure dates by the September meeting. Exeter are investigating options for 2013.

(i) HM recorded her formal thanks to RM for his work on the 2008 Edinburgh BAAS conference.

(j) SM raised the issue of the correct procedure for applying for Embassy funding issue for the annual conference. HM confirmed that the Conference subcom needs to liaise with the Development subcom on this matter so that all are kept abreast of developments and activities. SM and WK and TS to discuss this via email. SM also noted that the Embassy require a full report on spending, with details of Teacher and PG subsidies, advertising and postage costs, etc. She pointed out that we could also bid for assistance with the cost of placing the abstracts online and the fees for room hire, etc.

(k) SM raised the issue of institutional support for the conference organiser (i.e. in terms of teaching remission, etc.). The practice in the past has been for the Chair to write to the VC and/or Head of Department of the host institution and/or department outlining the demands of conference organisation, etc. HM to write to Nottingham regarding the 2008 conference. SM suggested the possibility of BAAS providing some financial support for this. HM noted that in the past we’ve felt that the host institution would/should fund this and that this is a possible grey area in terms of our Charity status. MW pointed out that as the REF is moving towards prioritising Knowledge Transfer, this might be used as a means of selling teaching remission for conference organisation to host institutions. SM suggested that a way around the issue might be to increase the conference honorarium. TS will look into this issue properly for the next meeting as there may be some issues with the Charities Commission.

11. Awards Subcommittee (IS reporting)

(a) IS reported that he had met with Eric Sandeen at EAAS who was very enthusiastic about the Wyoming TAship, which they’re happy to continue. The advert for the TAship has gone out through the usual channels with the deadline set for December. SM and IB will serve alongside IS on the judging committee panel.

(b) IS noted that the Awards subcom had discussed the issue of the eligibility of Committee members entering for BAAS grants/essay prizes. The Exec agreed that it was probably best that Committee members were deemed ineligible to apply for STAs, PG and Founders’ awards. However, it was agreed that it was unfair to disbar Exec members from the Arthur Miller Prize and the Book Prize as these were eminent awards for research. In terms of the Eccles Awards, IS noted that PD was adamant that there was no disbarment. As BAAS does not own this award it was agreed that PD had the final decision.

(c) IS reported that he and his assistant had been compiling an Awards portfolio with full details of the administration of the Awards over the past two years of awards. This will be passed on to IS’s successor when IS steps down in 2009.

(d) IS reported that printing and publicity costs for 2008 had come to £527. This will rise to £571.05 in 2009 as the company which prints the posters will have to include VAT. The Committee were happy with this.

(e) IS reported that PD wrote to him and to HM regarding the renewal of the Eccles Awards. PD has offered to fund a European Fellow and two European PG Awards as new awards. In addition, PD has offered to raise the UK PG Award by 25% to £500. PD suggested that the European Awards would be a modest £200 more generous than the UK awards to assist with airfares. The Eccles Awards funds break down as follows: The North American Professor award is worth £6000; 3 UK Fellowships at £2000 each are worth £6000; 5 UK PG awards at £500 each amount to £2,500; one European fellowship would be worth £2,200 each; 2 European PG awards at £700 would total £1,400. The total grants, therefore, would amount to £18,100. PD also proposed an increase in the grant to BAAS for administration costs, raising it to £1,400. Thus these new awards and the increased admin grant mean that the total prize money to be awarded by the Eccles Centre amounts to £19,500.

(f) IS asked Michelle (his assistant in administrating the grants) to prepare a detailed allocation list of her work for BAAS and last year she worked in excess of 200 hours. With new awards coming on stream, IS proposed that BAAS add £250 to the Eccles money in order to meet Michelle’s costs. This was agreed by the Committee.

12. Libraries and Resources Subcommittee

(a) Nothing new to report as the next meeting will take place in the British Library on 2 July.

(b) On the issue of INTUTE, DE is to discuss at BLARs meeting and have a proposal for the Development subcom for the September meeting.

13. EAAS (WK reporting on behalf of PD)

PD sent a written report.

(a) PD reported that he had attended his first EAAS council meeting in Oslo. The committee meets for half a day prior to the conference.

(b) It was decided that in future the annual payment by members to EAAS will be based on the number of paid up members on December 31 of the calendar year. Practice varies among EAAS members, with many operating a rolling membership renewal, but there are others as well as BAAS that operate a calendar year membership, and in that case the end of year number is a more accurate indication of membership numbers. This will increase the cost of EAAS membership to BAAS, but will also result in more accurate reporting of the strength of the subject in the UK.

(c) In his report PD noted that EAAS, or at least the BAAS nominee to the council, would need to have a list of names of BAAS members in order to check that those wishing to be active in the EAAS conference are members in good standing. EAAS recognizes that these lists are owned by constituent member institutions, and that EAAS is specifically barred from using these lists in any other way than for the specific purpose of checking the membership status of conference participants. This was discussed amongst the Committee as BAAS is not able to pass membership lists on to other bodies. WK to inform Phil that EAAS will have to send on a list of registrees which will be checked by BAAS Treasurer. HM reiterated that BAAS cannot send lists for data protection reasons.

(d) PD’s report noted that member organizations were encouraged to follow the recent French example in giving financial aid to PhD students from other European countries to take part in activities aimed at young scholars. The BAAS postgraduate conference was noted as a particularly successful national initiative that might be internationalised in this way.

(e) PD’s report noted that member organizations are encouraged to advertise and report on any such useful activities through American Studies in Europe (with or without grants). All copy for American Studies in Europe should go through PD. PD suggested that those with news items for ASIB also send it to him. PD made specific reference to the BAAS PG Conference and requested that make it a matter of course to send him information (MC to ask the organizers to forward information to PD). PD stressed the need to utilize EAAS and foreground American Studies activities in Britain. The deadline for forwarding information to PD is mid August.

(f) In his report, PD noted that EAAS is anchored financially by the Amsterdam Trust Fund, accumulated and fostered by Rob Kroes some years ago. EAAS is moving towards a firmly constituted legal position under European law (something akin to BAAS’s charitable status) and the role of the Trust Fund will be reviewed as part of the legal process.

(g) PD’s report noted that increasing number of national associations wish to join EAAS. As this creates considerable governance difficulties within the association, as well as financial pressures, a working party was established to consider ways forward.

(h) At the EAAS conference in Oslo, there were some technical problems – with the ambassadorial reception, with the quality of the conference banquet, and with the expense of Oslo. It was decided at the EAAS meeting that a previous practice of not allowing workshop chairs to deliver papers should be reinforced. It was also mooted that the end of conference shoptalks might not be serving a useful purpose, and that time might be used more productively.

(i) The next EAAS conference will be held in Dublin, 26-29 March 2010. The conference theme is ‘”Forever Young”? The Changing Images of America’ – which allows plenty of room for all kinds of approaches. The call for workshop proposals will, as always, be made well in advance of the conference.

(j) PD’s report noted that the EAAS online journal, the European Journal of American Studies, http://ejas.revues.org/ encourages submissions from all American Studies approaches.
He also noted the EAAS travel grants (for details, see http://www.eaas.eu/travel_grants.htm https://exchange.aber.ac.uk/exchweb/bin/redir.asp?URL=http://www.eaas.eu/travel_grants.htm), one of which was won by a British applicant in the most recent competition.
(k)PD’s report concluded by noting that the cost to BAAS of supporting its representative to this year’s meeting was considerably defrayed by the Eccles Centre, which paid all hotel and conference registration, and by EAAS, which pays a small per diem towards subsistence costs.

14. Any Other Business

(a) SC sent a note via the Secretary to register her thanks to HM and Martine Walsh for lobbying on behalf of JAS and securing the successful ERIH rating.
(b) CM noted that RM and PD had attended the UKCASA meeting on behalf of BAAS. RM sent a short report to CM noting that much of the meeting was devoted to a presentation by Martin Williamson, Head of Research Analysts at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. Williamson emphasized that he and his colleagues wanted to improve their contacts with people in area studies. PD stepped down as UKCASA chair. The new chair is Professor Susan Hodgett (Ulster), who works in Canadian Studies, and Professor Tony Chafer, the UKCASA treasurer, reported that the financial condition of UKCASA is healthy enough that it is not necessary to ask member organizations for a subscription fee on an annual basis. Instead, he will contact member organizations for a membership contribution when necessary (probably between about 18 months and 2 years).

15. Date of next meeting

The next Executive Committee meeting will be held at the University of Leicester on 26 September 2008. Subcommittees will meet at 10.30am.

Dr. Catherine Morley
email: catherinemorley@brookes.ac.uk

BAAS 2008 Annual General Meeting

Minutes of the 2008 Annual General Meeting, held at University of Edinburgh on March 28, 2008.

Elections:
Secretary: Catherine Morley (to 2011)
Treasurer: Theresa Saxon (to 2009)†
Committee: Will Kaufman(to 2011)*
Robert Mason (to 2011)
Mark Whalan (to 2011)
Andrew Lawson (to 2009)†
PG Rep: Michael Collins (to 2010)*

*Not eligible for re-election to this position.
†Fulfilling an unexpired term due to a resignation from the office.

The Treasurer circulated copies of the draft audited accounts, which he asked the AGM to approve. As well as the accounts, GT circulated the Trustees’ Report which now takes into account the new regulations (the Charities Act of 2006 and The Statement of Recommended Practice, Accounting and Reporting by Charities [SORP] 2005). The purpose of the new format report is to allow the Charity Commission to see what the charity is doing and its plans for the future, and to make sure that it is fulfilling its public benefit requirements. BAAS has no difficulty in fulfilling the charity definition of public benefit given its focus on education. However, from next year a statement will need to be included in the accounts about how the charity provides public benefit. One of the principles of the public benefit test is that where benefit is to a section of the public, the opportunity to benefit must not be unreasonable restricted by geographical or other restrictions or by ability to pay any fees charged.

GT informed the AGM that the key figure this year is the healthy deficit of £21,503, compared to a surplus of £4515 in 2006. GT reassured the AGM that this was related to spending on the Eccles awards. This is largely due to the fact that BAAS paid out £17,000 in Eccles Centre Awards during 2007, although the money for these awards was received in 2006 and therefore inflated the 2006 accounts. This situation will not occur in 2008, since the Eccles Centre funding will both be received and awarded during the current accounting period. The deficit is also partly due to the fact that all travel awards were increased to £750 from £500 in 2007. Furthermore, other funding (from the US Embassy) for conferences and prizes was down over £8000.

GT noted that subscriptions were up by almost £6000 and he also reported on membership figures; there are currently 523 fully paid up members (including 190 postgraduates), which compares with 435 at this time last year and 384 in April 2006.

Richard Crockatt proposed that the accounts be approved; Nick Selby seconded the motion, and it was carried forward unanimously.

GT reported on progress made with Gift Aid, which has been an ongoing issue over the last few years. Since 2000, membership subscriptions and donations have been eligible for Gift Aid, and BAAS can claim back 22/78th for those who have signed legitimate Gift Aid declarations. However, the audit trail has been uneven for this and as a result, GT sent out letters earlier this year with the new template for Gift Aid declarations. On the basis of the forms back, he has now submitted another claim to the Inland Revenue for £3225.54. In all, combined with the amount claimed last year, it should bring in approximately £8000. This sets the BAAS Gift Aid ready to claim on a rolling basis.

Finally, GT reported that he had issued all BAAS members with membership numbers in Autumn 2007. All members without numbers should contact GT for details.

The Chair offered a comprehensive verbal report, in which she noted that American Studies continues to thrive in the UK, providing opportunities for postgraduates through to professors to pursue interesting areas of intellectual enquiry. She acknowledged that BAAS plays a significant role in this pursuit and dissemination of knowledge on US culture, history, literature, politics, and also underlined how the Association offers both intellectual and financial support for school children, teachers, undergraduates, postgraduates, conference organizers and individual researchers. HM observed that this year alone, BAAS will award 32 prizes worth a total of £41,000. HM gratefully acknowledged the assistance of the US Embassy and also of individual BAAS members who regularly contribute to the Short Term Travel Award funds or who donate anonymously in other ways.

The Chair also discussed the healthy state of American Studies in terms of the anticipated RAE results in American Studies and Anglophone Area Studies, and by the contributions made to RAE submissions in Politics, English, History, and other sub-panels. She noted that American Studies has always extended beyond its boundaries, with American Studies research being carried out in most UK universities, though not always under an explicit American Studies banner. HM reminded the AGM that part of BAAS’s remit is to facilitate the wide circulation of information about American Studies in the UK, and to ensure that the work that our members do receives the exposure that it deserves. She also announced that this year BAAS was able to acknowledge the important work undertaken by Peter Boyle (Nottingham) in relation to setting up the original BAAS Teaching Assistantships by renaming them after him.

The Chair noted that American Studies experts in the UK continue to secure a whole range of awards, fellowships and prizes; for instance, they are selected to serve on AHRC peer review panels, and many have received promotions within their home universities or achieved career progression by moving to other institutions.

Congratulations were extended to the following BAAS members in relation to appointments, promotions and awards.
Neil Campbell has been promoted to Professor of American Studies at Derby; Dick Ellis has been promoted to Professor at Birmingham; Mark Phythian has been appointed as Chair of Politics in the field of international security and global foreign policy at the University of Leicester; Neil Wynn was made Professor of American Studies at the University of Gloucester.
Professor Tim Woods has been appointed Dean of the Faculty of Arts at Aberystwyth, and Dr. Jenel Virden has been appointed Head of Humanities at Hull.
Dr. Rebecca Earle has been promoted to Reader at Warwick; Dr. George Lewis has been promoted to Reader in American History at Leicester and has been named the new Director of the Centre for American Studies at Leicester starting in January 2009; Dr. Jay Prosser has been promoted to Reader in Humanities at Leeds; and Professor Margaret Walsh (Nottingham) has been awarded a Leverhulme Emeritus Professorship.
Professor Martin Halliwell has been invited to join the AHRC Postgraduate Panel 3 (English Language and Literature) for a full three-year term, from 2007 to 2010; Martin has also been appointed Head of the School of English at Leicester from autumn 2008.
BAAS members have received important and high profile AHRC awards in the last year, including Dr Matthew Jones, Professor Peter Messent and Professor Douglas Tallack (all at Nottingham) and Dr. Alan Rice (UCLAN).
Dr. Alan Rice (UCLAN) and Dr. Duco Van Oostrum (Sheffield) were awarded National Teaching Fellowships for their contributions to American Studies.
Dr. Will Kaufman (UCLAN) was awarded a prestigious Woody Guthrie Research Fellowship, which will allow him to spend time in the Guthrie Archives in New York this summer. Many other BAAS members received both small and large grants and awards.

The Chair also noted the sad loss of a long time BAAS member, Dr Robert Harrison (University of Wales, Aberystwyth), who died in May 2007.

The Chair reported to the AGM that she had attended many functions on the community’s behalf over the past year, including inaugural lectures such as Susan Castillo’s at King’s College London, an AHRC event in London in June and another in Edinburgh in October, the UKCASA AGM in December, and the JAS editorial board meeting. The Chair reported that BAAS and JAS continue to work together well, and that there are plans to digitize all of the back issues of JAS in order to aid American Studies scholarship. She also met with Penny Egan, Executive Director of the Fulbright Commission, in order to plan ways of working together more closely on areas of mutual interest. The Chair also attended a luncheon with former President Jimmy Carter on 21 June at the Rothermere American Institute where he was offered the George Oglethorpe medal, and the Ambassador’s 4th of July barbeque at Winfield House. She returned to Winfield House on 20 September to meet the new Minister and Deputy Chief of Mission, the Honourable Richard LeBaron, the new Minister-Counsellor for Public Affairs, Mr. Barrie Walkley, and the new Defence and Naval Attaché, Rear Admiral Ron Henderson.

The Chair noted that the officers and members of the Executive Committee work extremely hard to protect and enhance American Studies in the UK, aiming to ensure that the voice of American Studies is heard as universities, funding bodies and the government make their decisions. The Executive Committee responds to a variety of consultation exercises, often with little notice. Over the last year, BAAS Committee members have undertaken the following work on behalf of BAAS:

A HEFCE review of specialist library funding;
A consultation on the contribution that BAAS makes to knowledge transfer activities;
The AHRC’s proposals on block grant;
The AHRC’s plans to move to a new panel structure;
A Joseph Rowntree report on Ethical Guidance;
British Library consultations on research outputs in India and China, and on the collection policy of US patents;
A survey on the economic impact of American Studies for a British Academy/LSE project intitled ‘Maximising the Impact of the Humanities and Social Science Research’;
QAA subject benchmarks;
The Eupean Reference Index for the Humanities;
The Research Excellence Framework.

The Chair noted that the Exec also respond, again with short notice, to media requests, finding speakers who are willing to discuss the US elections, the cultural significance of hula hoops, gang violence, the relevance of Flag Day, and other matters. BAAS supports the development of other related organisations and societies, including HOTCUS, Historians of Twentieth Century United States, members of whom are attending this conference, and the Transatlantic Studies Association.

The Chair concluded by thanking members of the BAAS Executive Committee, including Ian Bell, Paul Blackburn, Susan Castillo, Richard Crockatt, Philip Davies, Dick Ellis, Martin Halliwell, Will Kaufman, George Lewis, Sarah MacLachlan, Jo Metcalf, Theresa Saxon, Ian Scott, and most especially the other officers, Jude Davies, Catherine Morley, and Graham Thompson. Thanks were also extended to Sue Wedlake, Michael Macey and Ambassador Tuttle at the Embassy of the United States, for their support of American Studies in Britain. Final thanks were extended to Robert Mason and his colleagues at Edinburgh, for organizing such an excellent conference.

Conferences:
Dr Sarah MacLachlan began her report by acknowledging what a huge success the Edinburgh conference had been so far, and offered public congratulations to Robert Mason and his team for the hard work they had put in before and during the conference. SM noted that this year she had visited the 2009 conference site in Nottingham with Celeste-Marie Bernier, the 2008 Conference Organizer. The conference will be based at the University of Nottingham (16-19 April 2009) and preparations are already well underway. She noted that the call for papers was available in conference packs and members were asked to consider submitting proposals early to allow for planning.

The 2010 conference will be held at the University of East Anglia, organized by Thomas Ruys-Smith. SM also announced that the University of Central Lancashire was now confirmed for the 2011 conference and that Manchester had expressed interested in hosting the 2012 conference. Finally, SM invited suggestions for future conferences.

Publications:
Professor Martin Halliwell began his verbal report by reminding the AGM that minutes of all meetings are published on the website, so that individuals may keep updated about current activities. He then reported on some of the highlights of the year in relation to the Publications Subcommittee. In relation to BRRAM, new microform releases include ‘Records Relating to the Liverpool Slave Trade in the Liverpool Record Office’ and ‘The American Correspondence of Arthur C. Murray with Franklin D. Roosevelt’. Forthcoming releases will include ‘The Canadian Papers of the 4th Earl of Minto’ and ‘The Manuscripts of Samuel Martin, a sugar planter in C18th Antigua’ (with an introduction by Natalie Zacek from the University of Manchester). MH noted that Professor Ken Morgan continues to be very active in developing the BRRAM catalogue and is looking to expand the number of large American research libraries that have a standing order to take all the BRRAM titles.

In relation to the BAAS EUP series, which is edited by Simon Newman and Carol Smith and EUP Senior Commissioning Editor, Nicola Ramsey, MH noted that the team has been busy in 2008 with the ever-expanding series. New additions to the series are: Mark Hulsether’s book Religion, Culture and Politics in the C20th United States (co-published with Columbia UP) and Rebecca Tillett’s Contemporary Native American Literature. Celeste-Marie Bernier’s book on African American Visual Arts is in press and scheduled for publication in September 2008. SN and CS are always happy to discuss ideas and proposals and ask that interested parties approach them directly.

MH noted that the JAS Editor, Susan Castillo, and Associate Editor, Scott Lucas, have been working very hard in 2008, streamlining the JAS editorial processes, including the introduction of a new manuscript review form for the journal’s reviewers. In 2007 Simon Newman and Carol Smith joined the JAS Editorial Board, followed in early 2008 by Paul Giles. In late 2007 Dr Bevan Sewell took over as Editorial Assistant after a long and diligent stint by John Matlin. Finally on JAS, MH noted that it is planned to have JAS available on JSTOR – likely to be late 2008.

MH reported that Dr Alison Kelly (Rothermere American Institute) took over as Editor of American Studies in Britain from Catherine Morley in summer 2007. Dr. Morley’s last issue as Editor was in autumn 2007 and Dr. Kelly’s first as Editor is the most recent issue (no. 98). MH noted that thanks are due to both Dr. Morley and Dr. Kelly for maintaining this really important publication within the American Studies community. The copy deadline for ASIB Issue 99 is 15 August 2008.

MH informed the AGM that Dr Elizabeth Boyle continues as Editor of US Studies Online. Issue 11 was published in November 2007 and Elizabeth is working on Issue 12 which will include a number of papers first aired at the 2007 Manchester BAAS Postgraduate Conference. There are also plans to move to 3 issues per year (rather than the current 2) in 2008.

MH reported that Dr Graham Thompson has continued to maintain the BAAS Website in 2007-8, in addition to his Treasurer duties. Dr. Thompson has agreed to continue with the website in the short-term, but BAAS members interested in becoming the Web Officer should contact MH. BAAS would be able to supply training for this role.

MH thanked Graham Thompson for his work on the Website and Ms Clare Elliott for her proficient and always easy-to-navigate BAAS web bulletins. Clare has also agreed to continue with this role for the short-term. Finally, MH thanked colleagues on the Publications Subcommittee for the work they have done in 2007-8.

Development:
Professor Richard Crockatt began his verbal report by noting that most important issue facing the Development Subcommittee in 2007-8 has been the recruitment challenge faced by the subject nationally. In figures reported to the June 2007 Executive Committee meeting, it was noted that numbers of students entering coded American Studies programmes in 2006 showed a halving of numbers as compared with 1996. The sharpest drop has come since 2003. This is a real challenge for the Development Subcommittee. RC observed that even acknowledging that these figures do not take account of joint programmes or American subjects undertaken as part of degrees in, for example, History, English and Politics, the figures are striking enough to have provoked comment in national newspapers. The subcommittee has responded to this challenge partly through involvement (along with the University of Birmingham) in the production of a CD-Rom ‘Discover American Studies’. (Further details below). RC also noted that, as Chair of the Development Subcommittee, he undertook a survey of heads of departments and programmes about possible use of the CD-Rom for recruitment purposes; he wrote the text for ‘Why American Studies?’ which has been placed on the BAAS website as an aid to recruitment to the subject.

RC offered thanks to the American Embassy for their continued support, noting that in 2007-8 the Embassy had continued its generous support of BAAS activities, in particular for awards and conference support. During summer 2007 the Embassy instituted a new and more rigorous procedure for application for grants, involving a form requesting specific information about items of proposed expenditure rather than general headings. A separate financial form was also required for each grant. In this round of applications, the following grants were applied for and received: the Ambassador’s Awards received £2830; £5000 was made available to facilitate attendance of postgraduates at the annual BAAS Conference; £2050 was granted to support administration and related costs of the BAAS conference. All of these grants amount to a grand total of £9880 in Embassy support.

RC noted that much time and energy had gone into the production of the ‘Discover American Studies’ CD-Rom, funded by a grant from the US Embassy and carried out at Birmingham University by Dr. Sarah Wood under the overall supervision of Professor Dick Ellis. A comprehensive presentation of the project was given at the September 2007 meeting of the Development Subcommittee, the response to which was that ‘all agreed that the project was of high quality and worth investing in.’ Following consultation with heads of American Studies departments and programmes about how they could use the ‘Discover American Studies’ CD-Rom, it was agreed that BAAS would purchase a significant number of copies to be distributed among departments and programmes for recruiting purposes. A final version is now ready for distribution in time for the 2009 university admissions round. The subcommittee wishes to thank Professor Dick Ellis and Dr. Sarah Wood for the hard work which has gone into the production of the CD-Rom.

RC reported that he had also attended the spring meeting of the Language, Linguistics and Area Studies (LLAS) Subject Centre Advisory Board. It was felt important for BAAS to retain active membership in LLAS. During further discussion of LLAS at the January 2008 Development Subcommittee meeting, it was noted that LLAS planned to set aside funds for teaching proposals in area studies, strengthening the reasons for BAAS representation. The question has been raised about whether the BAAS Development Subcommittee Chair should continue to attend LLAS Advisory Board given that two other BAAS Executive Committee members were members of the LLAS advisory Board in other capacities. It was felt that it was still important to retain the present level of BAAS representation since two of the three BAAS members on the LLAS Advisory Board were not specifically representing BAAS.

RC noted that postgraduate participation at the annual BAAS conferences continues to be impressive and the separate annual Postgraduate Conference attracts increasing numbers, indicating a high level of motivation and activity on the part of postgraduates in American Studies. The Manchester 2007 BAAS Postgraduate Conference was a great success, with a record attendance of 103 postgraduates. The quality of the paper was reported to have been very high. Plans for the 2008 BAAS Postgraduate Conference at Exeter University are well advanced. RC extended warm thanks to Ms. Jo Metcalf for coordinating postgraduate business in an efficient and enthusiastic manner.

RC also reported that Mr. Paul Blackburn took over the Schools’ Liaison brief during the year. PB concurred with the conclusion of Sarah Woods’s research (undertaken for the CD-Rom ‘Discover American Studies’) that what schools most needed was teacher champions, visits from academics to schools/colleges, and schools conferences. RC noted that sixth formers from Parrs Wood Sixth Form Centre attended the Manchester postgraduate conference, described by them as ‘excellent’. RC extended warm thanks to Paul Blackburn for the work he has undertaken in his first months as Schools’ Liaison Officer.

Awards:
Dr. Ian Scott began his verbal report by thanking the partners and associates who help financially or on an organisational or administrative capacity, especially the US Embassy, the Eccles Centre at the British Library, the University of New Hampshire, and the University of Virginia at Monticello. IS also thanked members of BAAS who donate funds to support the Short Term Travel Awards. IS also extended further thanks to all the anonymous judges (from within and outside the Executive Committee) who contributed to the successful business of the Awards subcommittee. IS noted that BAAS would distribute 32 awards (not including honourable mentions) for 2008, encompassing awards to A level students and established scholars, worth over £41,000. He noted that this bodes well for the discipline. IS concluded by urging members to continue to apply for the STAs, the PG Awards and the Founders’ Awards, the PG Essay Prizes, and the Eccles Centre Awards.

Libraries and Resources:
Professor Dick Ellis began his report by extending thanks to Dr. Matthew Shaw for his work on the production of the BLARs journal. The next issue will focus on resources in film and cinema. DE also thanked Sue Wedlake and the Embassy for their continued support, as well as thanking Professor Phil Davies and the Eccles Centre at the British Library. DE noted that BLARs continues its work in mapping out and supporting libraries and resources, especially developments in digitalisation and the e-environment. DE concluded his report by extending his thanks to all the members of the BLARs subcommittee.

EAAS:
Professor Phil Davies reminded the AGM of the upcoming EAAS conference in Oslo, details of which members had received in the newsletter and via the BAAS e-list. He also reminded the AGM of EJAS and encouraged the membership to submit to this valuable resource. PD concluded by recommending registration for the EAAS e-list to the AGM

AOB:
There was no any other business.

The AGM concluded at 4.15pm.

BAAS Executive Committee Meeting: March 27, 2008

Minutes of the 254th meeting of the Executive Committee, held at University of Edinburgh on March 27, 2008.

1. Present

H Macpherson (Chair), C Morley (Secretary) G Thompson (Treasurer), I Bell, P Blackburn, S Castillo, R Crockatt, J Davies, P Davies, R Ellis, M Halliwell, W Kaufman, G Lewis, S MacLachlan, J Metcalf, T Saxon, I Scott, and J Virden.

2. Minutes of the Previous Meeting

After minor corrections, these were accepted as a true record and will now go on the website.

3. Matters Arising

None

Action List Review
The Secretary asked the Exec to comment on the status of their Action List duties.

HM asked the committee to consider when would be a good time for an American Studies Heads meeting (and issue which had been raised by Professor James Dunkerley). HM added that she thought the end of May might be too soon for many people. RC suggested the second week in September. HM to circulate a potential date via the AS Heads e-list and see who may be able to come. HM added that James Dunkerley has made it clear that he sees ISA’s role as simply to provide a venue for the meeting, with BAAS taking the lead on providing the substance of the meeting and topics for discussion.

RC said that his article for the website, ‘Why American Studies?’, is now online. RC added that despite numerous attempts to make contact with Mr Low, he has not had a reply.

4. Chair’s Business

(a) Announcements

George Lewis has been named the new Director of the Centre for American Studies (Leicester) starting in January 2009.

Will Kaufman was awarded a prestigious Woody Guthrie Research Fellowship, which will allow him to spend time in the Guthrie Archives in New York this summer.

Jay Prosser has been promoted to Reader in Humanities at Leeds.

Birmingham University has been successful in its bid to exhibit the 1951 scroll version of Jack Kerouac’s On the Road, a 127 foot long continuous roll of teletype paper on which Kerouac typed out On the Road in three weeks in 1951. There will be a launch event in December.

(b) Invitations

HM will, on behalf of BAAS, be attending the Douglas W. Bryant Lecture at the Eccles Centre in on 7 April. The lecture, by Lord Kerr of Kinlochard, is entitled, ‘Constitutions: Does America’s work? Does Europe need one? And what about us?’

HM noted that she has had to decline invitations to various exhibitions and events.

(c) Consultations

HM noted that on behalf of BAAS, she and the officers replied to a variety of consultation exercises.

As announced in the January meeting, GT drafted a letter to the AHRC which HM sent out as Chair of BAAS to the AHRC noting our disappointment that the new postgraduate funding system still fails to recognize AS as a subject, despite recognizing other Area Studies. This was circulated to the full exec on 14/1/08. A reply was received from Dr. Sue Carver (Associate Director, Postgraduate, AHRC) on 29 January (circulated). This letter indicates that the purpose of the subject categorisations was to make it more manageable, and that the only exceptions were those areas that the AHRC felt were endangered or emerging, which focused on languages: ‘Hence, within the AHRC’s definition, American Studies does not fall under this remit, since it is not a language per se.’ It ended with a general, rather bland statement, that American Studies could be supported under a ‘range of subjects appropriate to the area of expertise’—in other words, History or English. This is a disappointing but not unexpected response. GT noted that Nottingham received a similar response. MH noted that European Studies is a separate category and failed to see why AS was not treated comparably.

HM received a summary document, “AHRC’s Decision Making Structures—Peer Review” as a consequence of attending an open meeting in Edinburgh in October (circulated). The paper summarises the discussions that have been had about the current panel structures, and whether all applications need the same number of peer reviewers.

ERIH (European Reference Index for the Humanities): As noted in the January meeting, the Literature list was supposed to be in place by the end of October, but has still not been published (as of 28/03/07) and there is still no indication on the website as to when this might be happening. HM will keep this under review. Publishers were specifically invited to comment in February 2008 on these lists. Further discussion on the ERIH and the AHRC in Chair’s Business, point (c) 7.

In January, HM completed the online survey on BAAS’s behalf regarding the economic impact of our research for a British Academy/LSE project.

As noted in January, Dick Ellis was the BAAS representative on a UKCASA committee which officially responded to the REF (Research Excellence Framework). Individuals also replied through their universities. HM and the committee offered thanks to DE for his hard work on this.

US patents consultation: HM has been asked to consider BAAS’s response to the British Library’s plans to dispose of the paper copies only of US utility patents 1859-1999. HM did not see any problems with this but wished to draw it to the attention of the Exec (letter circulated). DE felt that this should be brought to the BLARs committee to consider. They will discuss via email and report back to HM.

(d) Miscellaneous

HM responded positively to a request for permission to quote from a BAAS publication, a book review on Flannery O’Connor.

HM circulated a call for participation in the US Congress in the Classroom 2008 programme to Paul Blackburn for further dissemination.

HM thanked outgoing members of the Executive: Jo Metcalf, Graham Thompson, Richard Crockatt, and Jude Davies. She also thanked Catherine Morley who is up for re-election and Will Kaufman who has noted his desire to stand again. HM thanked the entire committee for helping to make her first year as Chair run smoothly.

5. Secretary’s Business

(a) CM noted that, as usual, her main role revolved around information flow. She helped direct people with research and grant queries to the appropriate sources; fielded enquires for bibliographic assistance from many overseas academics; directed very many queries regarding the conference to Robert Mason; advertised the conference and the elections in particular via the usual avenues and after the Elections at the AGM will update the Charities Commission information with details of the committee members. CM wrote to the CUP syndics regarding the recommendation to nominate Professor Paul Giles to the JAS Editorial Board.

(b) CM liaised with TIME magazine regarding an article on American Studies in Britain and referred the journalist to various BAAS members for his research.

(c) CM also liaised with the Silver River TV production regarding the nomination of History experts for an upcoming documentary on the year 1968.

(d) CM updated BAAS’s details with the Peterson’s Survey, listing all BAAS Awards.

6. Treasurer’s Business

(a) The Treasurer circulated a report to the committee noting that the bank accounts (as at 28/12/07) were as follows: General Deposit, £36,280.00; Short Term Awards, £11,934.91; Current, £2,445.27; Education and Development, £5,070.98; Conference, £969.96; making a total of £44,117.23. In addition the RBS Jersey has £14,973.10 and the US Dollar Account has $7,244.39

(b) GT reported that fully paid up members for 2008 currently stand at 523 including 190 postgraduates. This compares favourably to the position last year on 19/04/07, which was 435 members (with 107 postgraduates). When those who haven’t so far updated their Standing Orders are included, the numbers rise to 586 (209 postgraduate) compared to 505 (with 163 postgraduate) in April 2007.

(c) GT noted that from next year we will need to include a statement with the accounts noting what exactly is the public benefit of BAAS. There cannot have any restrictions on public benefit in terms of ‘geography’ (this needs to be clarified in terms of national/international perimeters).

(d) GT noted GT noted an Accounting Deficit of £21503 in the accounts this year compared to a
surplus of £4515 in 2006. This is largely due to the fact that we paid out £17,000 in Eccles Centre Awards during 2007, although the money for these awards was received in 2006 and therefore inflated the 2006 accounts. This situation will not occur in 2008, since the Eccles Centre funding will both be received and awarded during the current accounting period. The deficit is also partly due to the fact that all travel awards were increased to £750 from £500 in 2007.

(e) GT also noted that expenses for the committee was down this year (See p. 11 of circulated Treasurer’s Accounts report for full details).

(f) Gift Aid recouped £3225.54. This is down on last year – but this is due to the fact that the back-dating of the previous claim included substantial donations from one individual. This brings us up to date now and we’ve recouped all we can at this stage. In future the claim can be submitted at the end of the tax year. HM noted thanks to GT for his work on progressing the Gift Aim claim, particularly as he is the first BAAS Treasurer to have been able to do so.

7. Development Subcommittee (RC reporting)

(a) RC reported that he had completed the text of ‘Why American Studies?’, which is now online.

(b) RC has also revised the rubric on application for conference funding. This revised form is now online.

(c) RC also liaised with Professor Alan Dobson, Chair of the Transatlantic Studies Association (TSA), regarding his desire to establish closer links with BAAS.

(d) RC noted that in future the Chair of the Development Subcom will have to submit full reports for US Embassy grant applications. These reports will need to be supplemented with details of how Embassy money has been spent on awards and conferences (IS to provide such information).

(e) RC noted that he following requests were received and provisionally approved for funding for conferences:

Simon Newman for the annual Scottish American Studies Association Conference in February 2008 to facilitate the attendance of postgraduates: £300.

Michael Kindellan for a conference at Sussex University on ‘Problems of Major Form: 19th and 20th Century Long Poems’ to facilitate attendance of postgraduates: £300.

The committee formally approved these bids.

(f) RC reported that conference preparations for the Exeter BAAS Postgraduate conference were ongoing.

(g) RC also noted that BAAS, with the assistance of Paul Blackburn, is continually building its work in school liaison activities.

(h) RC also suggested that BAAS needs to highlight a list of prominent American Studies graduates and feature them on the website as a way of showing where American Studies degrees lead. JV noted that most of the groundwork on this has been done this before. WK added that he has done some work on this. GT reiterated that this should be pursued and added to the website. DE noted that while such a list is not on the American Studies CD, there is extensive reference to careers on the CD. WK to send information on this to GT for the website.

(i) RC offered thanks to all who have helped during his tenure on the committee and especially during his time as Development Subcom Chair.

(j) WK raised the issue of work-placement in the US and wondered if there was some way of funding someone (BAAS presence involved with someone working in the US – BAAS as involved in a practical/vocational way). RC noted that this happens in year abroad programmes anyway and such an idea would be problematic outside the confines of an established programme/link with an institution. HM and CM remarked that this might be difficult to manage.

(k) PB raised the issue of a Schools section on the website. This was agreed to be a good idea and will be taken further.

8. Postgraduate Business (JM reporting)

(a) JM reported that all is in order for the Exeter 2008 Postgraduate conference in November.

(b) JM suggested that the Postgraduate representative’s name should be highlighted on the Postgraduate Section of the website, so that postgraduate members would know whom to contact.

(c) JM noted that the 2007 Postgraduate conference had been very successful. Part of this success of was due to the fact that she (as one of the conference organisers) had received funding from the Embassy to bring four high-school students to the conference. She suggested that this might be continued, with the Embassy bid taken on by the organiser of the Postgrad conference (and overseen by the Development Subcom).

9. Publications Subcommittee (MH reporting)

(a) BRRAM

MH has written to KM with a request to write a piece on the BRRAM holdings for ASIB.

(b) Edinburgh University Press (EUP)

Rebecca Tillet’s book Contemporary Native American Literature has been published in the BAAS series. Celeste-Marie Bernier’s book on African American Visual Arts has been edited and is now in press, scheduled for September 2008 publication.

(c) Journal of American Studies

MH reminded that committee that four Editorial Board members are due to finish their terms in 2008: Professor J Beer, Professor J Dumbrell, Professor A Fairclough and Professor S Fisher-Fishkin. These positions will need to be renewed or replaced in comparable subject areas.

SC noted that JAS regularly receives submissions in Women’s History, and this might be worth bearing in mind in terms of potential candidates.

SC noted that Sharon Monteith will guest edit the Aug 2009 special edition on Hurricane Katrina.

SC also noted that submissions are now all done electronically, which means that people get replies within approximately 2 months. SC thanked all committee members who read for the journal throughout the year.

Finally, SC added that Scott Lucas has begun the process of publishing additional book reviews online, in order to ensure that the widest number of reviews get placed. She raised issue of possibly doing this with articles in the future.

(d) American Studies in Britain (ASIB)

AK worried that there may have been a delay in members’ receipt of ASIB. There were no complaints noted.

AK asked the Exec to consider moving to a lighter weight of paper. There were no objections.

(e) US Studies Online

MH noted that Issue 11 was published in November, and included 5 papers.

Elizabeth Boyle also wrote to mention that five delegates from the Manchester 2008 BAAS Postgraduate Conference have been invited to resubmit their papers for issue 12.

(f) BAAS Website

As of yet there have been not been any serious expressions of interest in taking over the running of the website therefore GT will continue in the role as Webster. GT has been in discussion with DE, as Chair of BLARs, regarding the kind of a website BLARs would like to see. DE mentioned that they like the current model but would like to see some additions (for instance, wikis). Talks will continue between GT and BLARs.

GL asked Leicester experts about the cost of updating – and they felt that the idea of a glossy new skin was complicated.

On the issue of training, TS spoke to a few firms who suggested we contact Learn Direct to train someone to work website (the basic one-day course, Introduction to DreamWeaver, costs £195). Training for other courses is also available from Learn Direct. TS questioned whether this was worth the investment and whether BAAS would be able to find someone willing to do it.

HM and the entire committee thanked GT for his work on the website and all are delighted with his decision to continue with it.

Thanks were also extended to Clare Elliott for her management of the BAAS mailbase.

10. Conference Subcommittee (SM reporting)

(a) The Conference Subcom was very pleased with the progress RM has made with the 2008 Conference and congratulated him on his development of the conference programme.

(b) SM noted that there was nothing new to report on Nottingham; however all preliminary arrangements are in place.

(c) For UEA 2010 Tom Ruys Smith is in place as conference organiser. Venues have been booked and good conference support is in place. There are 60 quality rooms on campus. Other accommodation will be in hotels. Hotel price can be kept within a reasonable budget. TRS will be invited to the next meeting.

(d) SM added that the conference subcom will recommend to Nottingham and UEA the continuation of the online booking system which worked so well for Edinburgh.

(e) SM raised a concern with the issue of conference numbers: once the conference hits 200 it can be difficult to accommodate. This is an ongoing issue and one which the Conference Subcom will need to bear in mind.

(f) 2011 has now been confirmed for UCLAN. We need to start thinking about venues for the 2012 conference.

11. Awards Subcommittee (IS reporting)

(a) IS reported that he had followed up on HM’s meeting with Penny Egan on 22 January to discuss the financial implications and the nature of a possible BAAS-Fulbright relationship. Fulbright wishes to work with BAAS in promoting their awards. IS noted that Ms Egan did mention the idea of a Fulbright Fellow who would be involved with BAAS, the Eccles Centre, and the American Politics Group. This fellow would act as a kind of roving ambassador. Ms Egan also felt that Fulbright might have a presence on the BAAS website. Discussions on all of these matters continue.

(b) IS apologised that he had no info on past TA recipients just yet but would try to get some by the June meeting.

(c) IS noted that the awards have been very successful in certain areas but there are issues associated with the expanse of the awards, especially in terms of workload for the Exec. IS said there had been many quality submissions this year and thanked all the panellists. The issue remains about how the awards publicity is distributed to the secondary education sector. In the last year, IS has set up database with schools information. This has been reasonably successful in terms of outreach; for instance the Barringer Fellowship and Monticello Fellowship both go to institutions without previous association with BAAS. However, IS noted that there are many, many schools that do not reply to the information at all. He observed a disproportionate amount of work on this in comparison to other awards which get a much bigger response. JV noted that the STAs have been around for longer and have a more established profile. IS felt that this is certainly the case but we need to make sure that the schools’ prizes are as established as the STAs. PB felt that students and schools may be unsure of what is involved with the essay prize and what is required. IS to work with PB on this in the future.

(d) IS offered thanks to his assistant at Manchester, Michelle, for her immense work on the awards.

(e) IS noted that this year BAAS would give out 32 awards worth approximately £41,000.

12. Libraries and Resources Subcommittee (DE reporting)

(a) BLARs subcom welcomed the institutional membership, which has recently been established.

(b) BLARs journal will carry on and the subcom will approach the US Embassy for funding (DE noted that the Eccles Centre may help if necessary).

(c) BLARs are currently involved in a debate regarding directions for resources, with an emphasis on electronic resources.

(d) DE also noted that BLARs need a BAAS representative from the Exec committee (someone other than the Chair). Secretary to solicit/approach members.

(e) BLARs will do a session at the Nottingham 2009 conference on E-editions.

(f) DE distributed the American Studies CDs and asked the Exec to distribute these to their students, careers advisers, etc.

(g) DE noted that the CDs are stored at Birmingham and will be posted from there. There will be a small charge for this and transport costs will be passed on to BAAS.

13. EAAS

(a) PD reported that since he has been a Rep there has not been a meeting so first contact will be in Oslo.

(b)The EAAS conference is upcoming and all notices and information have been passed on to Clare Elliott for distribution.

(c) PD recommends registration for the EAAS e-list which is an excellent source of information from the European scene.

(d) JV reported that she has also sent out conference information. She added that this year there would be three receptions and a dinner cruise at the conference and she encouraged all attendees to go along.

(e) JV also announced that TS has been elected to the EJAS Editorial Board.

(f) JD asked PD to bring ERIH to EAAS’s attention.

14. Any Other Business

HM mentioned that there would be a national conference of University Professors on 16 July which would discuss metrics.

GT proposed that as part of serving on the BAAS Exec that BAAS members would not apply for BAAS prizes. A short discussion ensued, after which it was agreed that the proposal would need to be a substantive agenda item at the next Awards subcom, to ensure that it received adequate attention. For example, PD felt that this would be detrimental to the Eccles awards, and issues to do with co-optees would need to be addressed. IS to head this discussion up with the Awards subcom.

15. Date of next meeting

The next Executive Committee meeting will be held at Manchester University on 27 June 2008.
Subcommittees will meet at 10.30am.

Dr. Catherine Morley
email: catherinemorley@brookes.ac.uk
Office Phone: (01865) 484977

BAAS Executive Committee Meeting: January 11, 2008

Minutes of the 253rd meeting of the Executive Committee, held at University of Nottingham on January 11, 2008.

1. Present

H Macpherson (Chair), C Morley (Secretary) G Thompson (Treasurer), R Crockatt, P
Davies, M Halliwell, W Kaufman, G Lewis, T Saxon, I Scott, J Virden.

Apologies
I Bell, P Blackburn, S Castillo, J Davies, R Ellis, S MacLachlan, J Metcalf.

2. Minutes of the Previous Meeting

After minor corrections, these were accepted as a true record and will now go on the website.

3. Matters Arising

Action List Review

4. Chair’s Business

(a) Promotions/Appointments/Awards
Martin Halliwell has been invited to join the AHRC Postgraduate Panel 3 (English Language and Literature) for a full 3-year term, from 2007 to 2010. Professor Halliwell has also been appointed Head of School of English at Leicester from Autumn 2008.
Neil Wynn was made Professor of American Studies at the University of Gloucester.
At the University of Aberystwyth Professor Tim Woods has been appointed Dean of the Faculty of Arts, from Sept 2007.
In April, Tony Parker (Dundee) was invited to a special reception for the Queen at the opening of the Scottish Parliament in recognition of his ‘International contribution to the life and culture of the people of Scotland.’
James Dunkerley wrote to HM to note that the HEFCE review of the School of Advanced Study, to which ISA belongs, has recommended continued funding on a 10% uplift through to 2012. He also mentioned in his correspondence that the position of ISA Director is still out for advertisement.

(b) Invitations/Events
HM attended Professor Susan Castillo’s Inaugural lecture at King’s College London on 27 November 2007.
HM attended the UKCASA AGM in London on 4 December. Minutes circulated.
HM met with Penny Egan, Executive Director of the Fulbright Commission, on 19 December. This was a meeting which was originally scheduled to occur in July. Their meeting in London focused on how BAAS and the Fulbright Commission might work together more closely. Fulbright have agreed to display the BAAS brochure and HM agreed that BAAS will advertise their awards proactively on the website and through the mailbase. In addition, BAAS and Fulbright are going to establish further talks via the Awards Subcommittee about future collaborations on prizes.
HM declined the invitation to Christmas drinks on 10 December from the Minister of the Embassy and Mrs Richard LeBaron.
HM attended a meeting in Edinburgh for the AHRC regarding new funding arrangements and represented BAAS’s views.

(c) Consultation
On behalf of BAAS, HM replied to a variety of consultation exercises.
Knowledge transfer. HM has put BAAS’s views forward firmly.
GT drafted a letter to the AHRC which HM sent out as Chair of BAAS to the AHRC noting our disappointment that the new postgraduate funding system still fails to recognize American Studies as a subject, despite recognizing other Area Studies. Thanks are extended to GT for his efforts on this. There has been no reply as yet. HM will circulate the letter to the committee. MH will attend a block grant meeting in London on 21 January and will raise the issue there.
ERIH (European Reference Index for the Humanities): The Literature list was supposed to be in place by the end of October, but has still not been published and there is no indication on the website as to when this might be happening. HM will keep this under review. Simon Newman has reported that the editors of the Journal of American History have responded directly to the ESF on the new online forms to object to their category B rating
Joseph Rowntree report on Ethical Guidance: HM indicated that BAAS as an organization does not stipulate ethical guidance as it expects its members to abide by the guidance offered by their individual institutions.
HM responded on behalf of BAAS to a consultation from the British Library on the usefulness and quality of research outputs published in India and China, in order to inform its future collecting from these parts of the world.
HM is filing out an online survey on BAAS’s behalf regarding the economic impact of our research for a British Academy/LSE project; HM also ensured that the open access public response survey was disseminated via the mailbase. HM asked the committee for feedback sooner rather than later.
HM will shortly reply to a British Academy consultation on the ERIH and Metrics-Based research assessment. All members of the Exec are invited to contribute guidance and advice. IS suggested that the question of methodology needed to be raised. PD noted that metrics was inevitable and said that UKCASA’s approach (largely the initiative of Dick Ellis) was to examine the research framework proposal and suggest ways of using the metrics system. HM acknowledged PD’s point – noted that if metrics is to happen then BAAS needs to be driving it rather than responding to it. IS reiterated the need to see how the system (which seems to be based on a STEM subject model) would work in relation to monographs, co-edited volumes and journal articles. HM noted that there seemed to be no concrete proposals in terms of how this would work for the Arts and Humanities. HM recommended that the Exec read the REF documents and send responses to her.
Dick Ellis is the BAAS representative on a UKCASA committee to respond to the REF (Research Excellence Framework). See http://www.hefce.ac.uk/pubs/hefce/2007/07_34/. Again, members of the committee are invited to contribute guidance and advice. Deadline for responses is 14 February.
HM noted that recently the QAA Subject Benchmarks underwent minimal revisions (ended in November).

(d) Miscellaneous

HM was able to direct various media people and academics to appropriate sources for a variety of subjects, including the history of the hula hoop and more commonly, the US elections.
HM noted that Professor James Dunkerley would like to propose another meeting of HoDs of AS. HM will liaise with Professor Dunkerley to arrange a meeting. JV and MH suggested that May might be a useful point in the academic calendar for this meeting.

5. Secretary’s Business

(a) CM noted that, as usual, her main role revolved around information flow. She helped direct people with research and grant queries to the appropriate sources; directed potential PhD candidates to appropriate members of the subject community; updated the BAAS Externals List; fielded enquires for bibliographic assistance from many overseas academics; directed queries regarding awards to Ian Scott; and is about to update the Charities Commission information with details of the committee members.
(b) CM liaised with Michelle Hodges of the Northern Ireland Tourist Board regarding the possibility of holding future BAAS conferences or events in Northern Ireland. CM directed Ms Hodges to the University of Ulster and Queens in Belfast as the best starting point in her efforts to bring academic events to Northern Ireland.
(c) CM wrote to the CUP syndics regarding the recommendation to renominate Professor David Seed to the JAS Editorial Board.
(d) CM also wrote to Martine Walsh regarding the possibility of locating the required volumes 1-27 of JAS which are necessary for full digitization.
(e) CM liaised at length with William Solesbury of the AcSS regarding a Knowledge Transfer project. She filled out various forms and questionnaires on behalf of BAAS and passed the issue on to HM. See Chair’s Business.
(f) CM was invited to take part, on behalf of BAAS, in a Manifesto Club event on 22 November 2007. The debate topic was whether the US has lived up to its incipient democratic promise. Unfortunately, she had to decline due to prior teaching commitments.
(g) CM was invited to an address by the Reverend Jesse Jackson at the Rothermere American Institute, University of Oxford, on 14 November 2007. Unfortunately, she had to decline due to prior teaching commitments.
(h) CM reported that she had sent BAAS pamphlets to the American Politics Group and to Penny Egan at the Fulbright Commission.
(i) CM also updated the Grants Register, listing all BAAS Awards.
(j) CM has also been in contact with Dr Roderic Vassie regarding the collation of the BRRAM pamphlets for filing in the BAAS Archive.
(k) CM also noted that she had been in contact with Alison Kelly and Clare Elliott regarding the advertising of the upcoming BAAS elections. Full details of the positions up for election will be sent to Alison and Clare after this meeting. A call for candidates and the necessary forms will go out in the next ASIB and in an email shot. Colleagues are asked to remind the membership of the necessity of attending the AGM to vote. Elections cannot take place unless the AGM is quorate. CM also reminded the committee that the AGM would be held on the first full day of the conference, Friday 28 March 2008, at 4.00pm.

6. Treasurer’s Business

(a) The Treasurer circulated a report to the committee noting that the bank accounts (as at 28/12/07) were as follows: General Deposit, £24,928.22; Short Term Awards, £11,421.58; Current, £1763.60; Library and Resources, £2.76; Education and Development, £5,031.11; Conference, £969.96; making a total of £44,117.23. In addition the RBS Jersey has £14,973.10 and the US Dollar Account has $5,761.25.
(b) GT reported that fully paid up members for 2007 currently stand at 413 including 135 postgraduates. This compares favourably to the position last year on this date, which was 351 members. When those who haven’t so far updated their Standing Orders are included, the numbers rise to 479 (with 154 postgraduate). Again, this compares favourably with the January 2007 total of 423.
(c) GT noted that all members have membership numbers now. This was instituted after the Leicester conference, to prevent people claiming the BAAS discount when they don’t have a fully paid up membership.
(d) GT will make a Gift Aid claim again in the near future.
(e) GT also raised the issue of royalties on the BAAS pamphlet series, unsure of where the royalties should go. PD suggested that royalties should be passed on to the author as there is no contractual agreement on this. The committee agreed with this.
(f) PD noted his thanks to GT for making a real difference to the Treasury of BAAS. HM seconded this, especially regarding GT’s efforts with Gift Aid.

7. Development Subcommittee (RC reporting)

(a) RC noted that we’ve gained funds from the US Embassy: £2830 for awards; £5000 to facilitate the attendance of PGs at the annual conference; and £2050 for conference expenses. This amounts to a total of £9980. The Embassy did not fund the requested Short Term Travel Awards of £3000 on the basis that is it not Embassy policy to fund individual student travel requests.
(b) RC reported on his correspondence with Mr Low (see Minutes 251, ref 7i). He has been in contact with Mr Low but received no response. He will write to Mr Low again.
(c) RC has written a text for the website under the title ‘Why American Studies?’ This was approved at the Development Subcom subject to minor revisions. RC will revise and circulate to full committee for final approval.
(d) On the subject of the American Studies CD Rom, we have a promised launch date for the Edinburgh conference with the prospect of using it for 2009 admissions. HM circulated a message to American Studies departments asking how many would be useful.
(e) RC reported on a request for funds to Development Subcom. This application came from an individual requesting funds to attend the conference. RC will write to candidate to say that BAAS cannot fund this but that EAAS may be able to offer financial assistance. RC will also alter the rubric on the online form to prevent other misunderstandings of this nature.
(f) PB sent RC an email with a number of queries regarding his role on the Exec as Teachers’ Representative. This was discussed and has been clarified.
(g) RC noted that he will not stand for election to the committee again when his post ends at the Edinburgh 2008 conference.

8. Postgraduate Business (RC reporting on behalf of JM)
(a) All is in order for the Exeter 2008 Postgraduate conference in November.
(b) 103 delegates attended the Manchester conference with very good reports all round. BAAS would like to note thanks to Jennie Chapman and Jo Metcalf for excellent work in preparing the Manchester 2007 Postgraduate conference.

9. Publications Subcommittee (MH reporting)

(a) BRRAM (KM sent a written report which was circulated to the committee)
The guide has been printed for “Records relating to the Liverpool Slave Trade in the Liverpool Record Office.” A copy has been deposited with the BAAS archive.
The introductory guide has been completed for “The American Correspondence of Arthur C. Murray with Franklin D. Roosevelt.” This has already been filmed on eight microfilm reels. This title is now ready for release.
The negative microfilms and the introductory guide for “The Canadian Papers of the 4th Earl of Minto” are promised by the end of January 2008.
A publishing agreement has recently been received from the British Library “The manuscripts of Samuel Martin, a sugar planter in 18th-century Antigua.” Dr Zacek has submitted a draft introduction, and is currently incorporating revisions suggested by the General Editor. Dr John Martin (De Montfort University) and Oxford University Press have agreed to a reprint of his “Oxford Dictionary of National Biography” entry on Samuel Martin. This will appear in the guide. The filming for this title has not yet begun.
Microform Academic Publishers are still awaiting the agreement of the Bodleian Library to the off-site filming of further USPG papers, principally in relation to Canada and the West Indies, now held at Rhodes House Library, Oxford.
No response has been made by the Jamaican institutions, despite a follow-up message, regarding the microfilming of materials in their care. Instead, we propose to pursue the detailed list of items relating to Jamaica (chiefly at the British Library) that have been filmed and deposited in the Special Collections at the University of the West Indies, Mona, Jamaica (see report of September 2007).
All the information from the General Editor with regard to the BRRAM series (see report of September 2007) has been passed on to MAP’s agent for North America, but the response has not been encouraging.
Material relating to slavery in the Goulburn Papers at the Surrey History Centre, Woking, has been filmed. There will be 8 reels altogether. The General Editor expects to complete the introductory guide in January 2008.
KM and RV will not be pursuing a projected title on the Lascelles’ West India properties (see September 2006 Minutes) because the material has already been earmarked for selective online publication as part of a conservation project conducted by the University of York’s Borthwick Institute for Archives.
KM reported that MAP will not be filming the additional Davenport Papers at the Merseyside Maritime Museum because they have been filmed recently by another company.
MH to recommend to KM the composition of a long overview piece listing contents of BRRAM to be published in ASIB.

(b) Edinburgh University Press (EUP)
Rebecca Tillet’s book Contemporary Native American Literature has been published in the BAAS series.
Celeste-Marie Bernier’s book on African American Visual Arts has been edited and is now in press, scheduled for September 2008 publication.

(c) Journal of American Studies
MH reported that Paul Giles (University of Oxford) has been approached formally by the JAS Editor to fill the vacant position on the Editorial Board. He has accepted and submitted his cv. This was ratified by the committee.

(d) American Studies in Britain (ASIB)
AK is in the process of compiling Issue 98, with an initial copy deadline of 11 January (extendable to 15 January if necessary). A lot of copy is already in or promised. AK extended her thanks to CM, GT and others who have been forwarding material sent to them.
Bob Pomfret at Oxford Brookes University is happy to continue formatting the newsletter and expects to supply the PDF by 25 January. AK has yet to receive confirmation that Sally Bourton in the Brookes Print Room is happy to extend her arrangement with ASIB, but CM didn’t foresee any problems with this.
Following the demise of the PostPack, the new mailing company for ASIB will be Able Types, based in Oxford. They have quoted a competitive price for stuffing and addressing envelopes as well as mailing, so AK will probably ask them to undertake these combined roles. (If necessary, should Brookes be unable to print for an external client, Able Types can also arrange printing.)
At the September meeting the Publications Subcommittee discussed the possibility of introducing a limited term for the editorship of ASIB. AK suggested that a two- or three- year term (four or six issues) is the fairest way of sharing the editorial opportunity. The Subcom thought that it was not necessary to formalize this. HM suggested that if we did have a fixed term that the minimum should be three years. The committee agreed that there should not a fixed term for the editorship of ASIB but that the incumbent would normally take on a minimum of a three-year period.

(e) US Studies Online
MH noted that Issue 11 was published in November, and included 5 papers.
Elizabeth Boyle also wrote to mention that five delegates from the Manchester 2008 BAAS Postgraduate Conference have been invited to resubmit their papers for issue 12.

(f) BAAS Website
As of yet there have been not been any serious expressions of interest in taking over the running of the website. GT has been in discussion with DE, as Chairs of BLARs, regarding what kind of a website BLARs would like to see. GT mentioned that they like the current model but would like to see some additions (for instance, wikis).
One suggestion was to send this out to an outside firm for redesigning it in the first instance and then finding someone to maintain it. GT’s feeling is that this would be prohibitively expensive.
The committee discussed the idea of a finding a university server but this was deemed difficult in terms of maintaining control over the website.
HM suggested revisiting the idea that this is an exceptional role meriting a small honorarium. TS suggested BAAS paying for the training of an Exec member to maintain the website. GT thought that the Exec members might be too busy for this kind of training and thought that someone from the outside might be better placed to take on the role. IS suggested trying to find someone at the conference at the AGM. HM thought this was a good idea. CM suggested that BLARs need to be the ones driving this initiative. CM will place the issue of the BAAS Website as an item on the agenda at the AGM. GL to find out about web design costs. TS to find out about training costs. DE to appeal to BLARs for advice and a possible volunteer to take over the running of the website.

10. Conference Subcommittee (GL reporting on behalf of SM)

Business mainly concerned the Edinburgh Conference:
(a) The Conference Subcom is very pleased with the progress RM has made with the 2008 Conference and congratulate him on his development of the conference programme.
(b) GL reported that Susan Douglas is unable to fulfil her plenary slot. A search is already underway for a suitable replacement.
(c) RM noted that approximately 80 people have registered thus far so an e-mail reminder will go out soon.
(d) RM requests offers for chairing from committee members.
(e) Dignitaries have been invited. Gary Younge (Guardian) will be tried again.
(f) The contract for the Nottingham Conference (16-19 April 2009) has been signed. GT and CMB have had a satisfactory tour of the accommodation.
(g) UEA 2010 is confirmed. RC reported that Thomas Ruys Smith is the designated organiser there. SM to liaise with Mr Ruys Smith over a site visit as soon as is practicable.
(i) UCLAN is still a possibility for the 2011 conference.
(j) Finally, GT reported that two conference accounts have closed: GL sent back £3105.90 to GT
from Leicester; GT sent £183 to Kent to cover the final shortfall.

11. Awards Subcommittee (IS reporting)

(a) IS reported that HM met with Penny Egan regarding a new relationship between BAAS and Fulbright over a new award. Following on from this, IS is to meet with Ms Egan on 22 January and discuss financial implications and the nature of the BAAS-Fulbright relationship.
(b) IS reported that two excellent candidates have been offered TA-ships: Tessa Croker and Maria Thomas are the recipients.
(c) IS discussed that he was inundated with STA applications – exceeding year on year – of a high quality. The Ambassadors Awards, Eccles Awards, Schools Awards, and BAAS PG Essay prize have all yielded many applications. The Book Prize has been spectacularly successful for 2008. HM observed that this reflects the health of the state of research in American Studies, amongst senior academics as well as postgraduate and undergraduate students. HM is to look into making a press release indicating the quality, number and value of the awards BAAS will give out at the conference.
(d) IS encouraged the committee to ask candidates to apply for awards that are still open.
(e) IS to seek further information on past TA-ship candidates in terms of their current status and the impact their TA-ships have had on their lives and careers.

12. Libraries and Resources Subcommittee (RC reporting on behalf of DE)

(a) BLARs has not met since that last BAAS Exec but there will be a meeting prior to Edinburgh.

13. EAAS

(a) PD reported that the application forms for the EAAS travel grants have gone out on the website and will go to AK and CE for further dissemination.
(b) The latest edition of the EAAS journal is now online and the Editor is seeking submissions for 3 issues in 2008.
(c) EAAS have requested BAAS membership numbers. GT to supply.
(d) JV is to travel to Oslo in February to check the conference accommodation and she will report back to the committee on that trip.
(e) Registration form for the EAAS conference is online.
(f) JV also noted that Jo Metcalf was a recent recipient of EAAS Travel Grant and suggested that we encourage our postgraduate students to apply for these EAAS grants.

14. Any Other Business

(a) MH raised the issue of possibly meeting three rather than four times a year, possibly dropping the June meeting. JV and PD voiced objections to this, citing previous attempts which resulted in an overload of work for the committee in September. HM noted that the June meeting was important for welcoming new committee members and introducing them to the workings and structure of the committee. All agreed that it was best to keep the current routine of four meetings per annum.
(b) PD reported that he was interviewed with GMTV on the morning of the Iowa caucuses. He is due to give an interview to Al Jazeera television next week.

15. Date of next meeting

The next Executive Committee meeting will be held at the University of Edinburgh on Thursday 27 March 2008. Subcommittees will not meet.

Dr. Catherine Morley
email: catherinemorley@brookes.ac.uk
Office Phone: (01865) 484977

BAAS Executive Committee Meeting: September 29, 2007

Minutes of the 252nd meeting of the Executive Committee, held at De Montfort University, Leicester on September 29, 2007.

1. Present

H Macpherson (Chair), J Davies (Vice Chair), C Morley (Secretary) G Thompson

(Treasurer), I Bell, P Blackburn, D Ellis, M Halliwell, W Kaufman, G Lewis, S MacLachlan, I Scott.

Apologies

S Castillo, R Crockatt, P Davies, J Metcalf, T Saxon, J Virden.

2. Minutes of the Previous Meeting

After minor corrections, these were accepted as a true record and will now go on the website.

3. Matters Arising

There were no matters arising.

Action List Review

4. Chair’s Business

HM extended a welcome to Paul Blackburn who, as the new Teachers’ Representative, replaces Hannah Lowe who did not wish to renew her cooptation because she has embarked on a PhD. HM, on behalf of the Executive Committee, wished her well in her studies.

(a) Promotions/Appointments/Awards

HM offered congratulations to Dr George Lewis, who has been promoted to Reader in American History at Leicester; Dr Neil Campbell, who has been promoted to Professor of American Studies at Derby; and Dr Jenel Virden, who has been appointed to Head of Humanities at Hull.

HM noted that Dr Alan Rice (UCLAN) and Dr Duco Van Oostrum (Sheffield) were awarded National Teaching Fellowships for their contributions to American Studies. Dr Rice’s award was specifically for his work on Americanisation and the teaching of Transatlantic Slavery and its legacies. Dr Van Oostrum’s award was made on the basis of his use of IT and Virtual Learning Environments as resource enhancement and the way that he designed cross-cultural elements in his American sports literature and film module, making it possible for his students to exchange ideas with students at the University of Maine in America and meet professional American basketball players in the classroom.

HM noted that Dr Alan Rice also received a £27k AHRC award for his project, Creating Memorials, Building Identities: The Politics of Memory in the Black Atlantic.

HM offered congratulations to other Americanists receiving AHRC awards: Dr Matthew Jones, Professor Peter Messent and Professor Douglas Tallack (all at Nottingham).

(b) Invitations/Events

HM attended a luncheon with former President Jimmy Carter on 21 June at the Rothermere American Institute where he was offered the George Oglethorpe medal.

HM attended the 4th of July barbeque at Winfield House. There she met, amongst others, Bill Barnard, the Chair of Democrats Abroad UK and subsequently sent him information regarding BAAS.

HM was invited to attend an event at Winfield House on 10 July in relation to F. Scott Fitzgerald but had to decline.

HM was invited to a private viewing of the 4 “Landmarks of New York” exhibition (Royal Institute of British Architects and the Embassy) on 5 September but had to decline.

HM was invited to Winfield House on 20 September to meet the new Minister and Deputy Chief of Mission, the Honourable Richard LeBaron, the new Minister-Counsellor for Public Affairs, Mr. Barrie Walkley, and the new Defence and Naval Attaché, Rear Admiral Ron Henderson. Iwan Morgan and Sue Wedlake were also present.

HM attended the JAS editorial board meeting on 28 September along with CM, MH, IB and GT.

HM was due to meet Penny Eagan, Executive Director of the Fulbright Commission on 23 July. Unfortunately Ms Eagan had to cancel this meeting. It has yet to be rearranged.

(c) Consultation

HM responded on behalf of BAAS to the last European Reference Index for the Humanities (ERIH) consultation on journals listing. In her reply, HM noted concerns over the project, including its failure to embrace interdisciplinarity or area studies and its possible stifling of innovation and experimentality. HM asked for the following journals to be added to the history lists: Journal of American Studies; Journal of Transatlantic Studies; Atlantic Studies; Comparative American Studies. HM also requested that American Quarterly was upgraded to an A journal rather than its current status as B. Finally, HM contacted the editors of all of these journals and suggested that they get their publishers to fill out the feedback forms, as these forms required levels of detail on publication that HM could not access herself. Thanks were extended to all of those who also contributed to this consultation. The literature lists will be published next month, and HM already has a long list of possible journals to add if they are not on the list, as a result of this consultation exercise. It is clear that the subject community feels very strongly about this use of ranking systems. The British Academy recently produced a report on Peer Review (circulated document) ‘Peer Review: The Challenges for the Humanities and Social Sciences’ which is available on the Academy’s website http://www.britac.ac.uk/reports/peer-review/index.html.

HM also made the case for American Studies as requiring two discipline experts. Dr Graham Thompson was nominated as a possible discipline expert for Literature and Professor Simon Newman as an expert for History.

JD requested that Dr Thompson and Professor Newman were reminded to be attentive to work in Cultural Studies.

MH requested that HM would make the case for the Journal of American History to be upgraded to grade A in all future correspondence. HM pursued this immediately after the meeting and submitted this request successfully.

HM noted that she had been contacted by Dr Jane Tinkler regarding an LSE Public Policy Group exercise (funded by the British Academy) entitled ‘Maximising the Impact of the Humanities and Social Science Research’. Dr Tinkler has requested BAAS to identify research from recent years and to recommend reports on American Studies and its impacts on policy, government, society and the UK economy in general. Dr Tinkler is running an online survey on the British Academy website to which academics can contribute. HM will distribute the email and asked the committee to reply and contribute to the survey.

(d) Correspondence Written

HM emailed the HOTCUS group (email circulated) in relation to developing relations and alliances between BAAS and the group. She received many welcome replies including responses from Dr Robert Mason, Professor Iwan Morgan, Dr George Conyne and others indicating an enthusiasm to work with BAAS in the future. HOTCUS’s first annual conference will be June 2008.

MH suggested contacting BRANCH in the future and perhaps inviting them to provide a panel for the conference.

HM liaised with the 2007 BAAS Postgraduate Conference organizers on the history of the conference and wrote an introductory piece for their programme.

HM corresponded with Dr Peter Boyle (Nottingham, retired) regarding the renaming of the BAAS Teaching Assistantships and reported that the new name of the awards is The Peter Boyle BAAS Teaching Assistantships. IS noted that all the publicity now includes Dr Boyle’s name.

(e) Correspondence Received

HM has been notified by Martine Walsh (CUP) that JAS is being digitized—the whole back catalogue. To facilitate this successfully CUP will require whole sets of journals and, therefore, are looking for donations of volumes 1-27 (unlikely to be returned). MH noted that the likelihood of finding a full run was slim. DE noted that there is an almost full run of the journal at the Birmingham archives. CM is to inform Martine Walsh of the possibility of locating the required volumes at Birmingham.

HM liaised with Christine Heckman regarding the Putney debates and their influence on the American democratic system. Ms Heckman asked for a list of possible presenters and the final programme is now ready: Wednesday, 31st October 7:30pm at St Mary’s Church in Putney. Formal title of the discussion is ‘Every Man and his Government: The American Premise’. The format will be 4 panelists and one Chair to facilitate the discussion. Participants are:

Bruce Norton (Debate Chair)

Trevor Burnard (U of Warwick)

Simon Middleton (U of Sheffield)

Adam I.P. Smith—(UCL)

Marc Stears (Oxford)

More information on the Commemoration overall is available at http://www.putneydebates.com/Events.html.

HM noted that she had been contacted by Mark Whalan regarding the South West American Studies Forum, asking BAAS to spearhead a project looking at why there might be a decline in applications to AS subjects.

HM noted that further information on engagement with AS applications would be taken under Development subcom business in relation to the CD-rom project.

(f) Miscellaneous

HM was invited to become a member of the QAA Benchmarking Steering Group for a period of three years.

HM helped BBC Radio 4 editors find a speaker for their Women’s Hour programme on Hilary Clinton as a US presidential contender.

HM corresponded with an individual regarding BAAS pamphlets on the web and the correction of a perceived error.

5. Secretary’s Business

(a) The Secretary circulated an email she had been forwarded from the Treasurer, regarding calls for elections to the Academy of Social Sciences. CM asked any of the committee who might wish to stand for election to contact her via email after the meeting.

(b) CM noted that her main role revolved around information flow. She helped direct people with research and grant queries to the appropriate sources; directed potential PhD candidates to appropriate members of the subject community; updated the BAAS Externals List; updated lists for BLARs and the new Teachers’ Representative (as well as welcoming the new Teachers’ Rep); fielded enquires for bibliographic assistance from many A-level students; directed queries regarding awards to Ian Scott; contacted the Charities Commission with details of the new committee members; and liaised with Dick Ellis regarding the JANET registration process.

(c) CM liaised with Chili Hawes of the October Gallery in London regarding publicity for an exhibition of Native American Art. Unfortunately, she had to decline an invitation to the opening of the exhibition.

(d) CM reported that she had attended a luncheon with former President Jimmy Carter on 21 June at the Rothermere American Institute, along with HM and MH, on behalf of BAAS.

(e) CM reported that she had been invited to attend the Fulbright College Day event on 29 September but had to decline as it clashed with the BAAS Executive Committee meeting.

(f) CM noted that she has been invited to a Fulbright Commission reception on Monday 15 October to celebrate the achievements of the Fulbright Summer Institute. Unfortunately she will have to decline the invitation.

(g) CM reported that she attended the JAS Editorial Board Meeting at the Royal Society on Friday 28 September long with HM, GT, IB and MH.

(h) CM (and MH) has also been in touch with Dr Alison Kelly, the new Editor of ASIB, regarding the final handover of the newsletter.

6. Treasurer’s Business

(a) The Treasurer circulated a report to the committee noting that the bank accounts (as at 1/10/07) are as follows: General Deposit, £23,723.49; Short Term Awards, £11,576.58; Current, £537.99; Library and Resources, £727.87; Education and Development, £5,031.11; Conference, £969.96; making a total of £42, 567.00. In addition the RBS Jersey has £14,973.10 and the US Dollar Account has $5,761.25.

(b) GT reported that BAAS membership numbers are on the increase with fully paid up members for 2007 standing at 481 including 172 postgraduates. This compares favourably to the position last year on this date, which was 420 members (140 of which were postgraduates). When those who haven’t so far updated their Standing Orders are included, the numbers rise to 550 (with 192 postgraduate). Again, this compares favourably with the September 2006 numbers of 497 (of which 161 were postgraduates).

(c) GT noted that he will shortly send out a Gift Aid letter, renewal forms and membership numbers to the membership. The Gift Aid forms will, it is hoped, result in a substantial amount of revenue for BAAS. He added that he was unsure about the issue of category in the membership number, i.e. in terms of the change in membership status. This is something that will have to be closely monitored.

(d) GT reminded the committee that membership of BAAS is for a calendar year and he noted that members are not often aware of this. The committee agreed that this was something to highlight on the website.

(e) GT attended a meeting with Professor Tony McEnery and Alicia Greated at the AHRC regarding the restructuring of the AHRC (see circulated flow chart document); GT observed that the language of the restructuring document centres on terms such as ‘fit for purpose’ and ‘streamlining administration’ etc. One of the 5 key principles driving restructuring is ‘the reduction of real or perceived barriers to interdisciplinary research.’ GT noted six key points from his discussion with Professor McEnery:

1. Greater reliance on peer review college;

2. The panel structure for research leave and postgraduate research as it now stands is to be eliminated– what was peer review panel is now the prioritisation panel;

3. Rolling application programme rather than set deadlines;

4. Setting up of a new academic advisory board drawing from subject associations (we may need to nominate someone from the committee);

5. The AHRC will make internal decisions on smaller awards (under £200,000), i.e. before it goes to the prioritisation panel;

6. Wish to return to the idea of larger awards involving some kind of interview and presentation element. GT noted that the AHRC funding landscape is to change significantly over the next few years and he encouraged committee members to attend upcoming consultation meetings in the next few weeks; MH has attended some of these meetings and compiled a report which the Secretary will circulate to the committee.

(f) GT noted that the question of institutional membership has arisen again and it has now been clarified that schools and libraries are to be classified as an institution: they may join BAAS for free and receive one copy of ASIB (but not JAS); and they may send one representative to attend the BAAS conference for the member rate. The rationale behind this is to include and reach out to schools and colleges. GT proposed that this new category of membership would be called ‘Schools, Colleges and Libraries Membership.’ The committee approved this. GT is to change subscription forms, add to the website and then to promote and advertise to schools.

7. Development Subcommittee (HM reporting on behalf of RC)

(a) RC has written to the US Embassy requesting funding totalling £11,380. He has received preliminary confirmation of the funding for the Ambassador’s Awards for a total of £2,830 (£1000 for the Postgraduate Award, £500 for the Undergraduate Award, and £250 for the School Essay). RC also requested funds for the BAAS Annual Conference (including administration, publicity, travel and expenses, and subsidies for five secondary school teachers to attend), STAs (£3000), and a contribution towards the cost of Postgraduate attendance at the BAAS Annual Conference (5 grants totalling £2000). RC expects a response on these latter requests imminently.

(b) RC received three requests for funding:

1. Professor Simon Newman wrote with a request for £300 towards the 9th Annual SASA. On the recommendation of the Development Subcom, this amount was agreed by the committee; 2. Michael Kindellan requested £300 for the ‘Problems of Major Form: 19th and 20th Century Long Poems’ conference at Sussex in February. The request asked either for speaker fees or postgraduate participation. On the recommendation of the Development Subcom, this amount was agreed by the committee to cover postgraduate participation; 3. PD requested £300 for the Congress to Campus events in November 2007, as per previous bids, which is 4 x £75 for speakers’ fees. On the recommendation of the Development Subcom, the committee agreed that this be funded subject to a bid being written up on the official form, so that there was an audit trail.

(c) PB offered many good ideas on liaising with schools, many of which will be taken forward.

(d) HM, on behalf of the committee, congratulated Dr Sara Wood on the quality and variety of the work that has been done on the CD-Rom which includes downloadable powerpoint presentations, graphics, quizzes and video clips and photos (amongst many other features) – all aimed to promote American Studies. The CD also includes six essays on specific subjects and many interactive features. The CD-Rom will be ready by the end of the year and the committee discussed the issue of the number of CDs which BAAS would wish to purchase – the last figures for costs are 20,000 at 33.3p, 5000 at 50p, and 10,000 somewhere on the sliding scale. There was a lengthy discussion amongst the committee regarding the way in which the CDs might be disseminated. At the Development Subcom meeting in the morning PD had noted that there were 3,800 Secondary schools to whom BAAS might send materials in bulk. A more targeted approach would be to send to universities for open days (and/or to distribute to students) or, alternatively, to send the CDs to sixth-form conferences. GT argued that BAAS would need to discuss an upper rather than a lower figure as the CD had been designed with a shelf life of 5years. GT also raised the issue of storage; DE mentioned that LLAS would be happy to send out the CD but not to store. DE added that Birmingham would be willing to store. HM noted that BAAS would need to have a strategy on how many CDs to send to institutions; DE suggested sending them out when events are held, e.g. Careers Advisory events; HM observed that BAAS would need some market research on who might be using the CD and their needs rather than distributing the CDs on a ‘first come first serve’ basis where CDs could potentially be wasted; HM suggested that some CDs would need to be reserved for universities (again, numbers raised as an issue). HM stressed that BAAS needed to show the membership that the organisation was active in Schools and the CD was a good way of demonstrating the hard work BAAS was putting into promoting the discipline. DE stressed that we need to be lavish with the CD as the relevant bodies had been with the languages model in the past and were now reaping the benefits; IS highlighted the difference in the disciplines between the languages model and area studies, particularly that students had prior knowledge of what languages were. HM suggested that BAAS send out a message via heads of subject departments (and/or admissions officer) and mail-base and to the Schools requesting information on how many CDs individuals or institutions would require – HM will coordinate this move.

8. Postgraduate Business (HM reporting on behalf of JM)

(a) HM noted that JM has copies of posters for the BAAS Postgraduate Conference and the committee was reminded to encourage their postgraduate students to attend. Manchester has currently 60 delegates currently registered for the BAAS Postgraduate Conference and they are hoping for 80 attendees (amongst which JM hopes there will be 5 6th Form students). The full conference programme is now online. JM received £300 from the US Embassy towards the conference. Sue Wedlake will attend the conference and Elizabeth Boyle (Editor, US Studies Online) will also attend with a view towards publishing a selection of papers in future editions of the journal. PB will attend the dinner in advance with Lizabeth Cohen; other Exec members were encouraged to attend the conference and the dinner with the plenary speaker.

(b) Jo Gill at Exeter is interested in hosting the next postgraduate conference.

(c) JM requested that the postgraduate lunch would be held on the first full day of the BAAS Annual Conference in Edinburgh (rather than the second day as is tradition). This is proposed to facilitate the formation of friendships and contacts among the postgraduate delegates. The committee agreed this. SM to inform RM (organiser of the 2008 conference).

9. Publications Subcommittee (MH reporting)

(a) BRRAM

A new BRRAM title on ‘Records relating to the Liverpool Slave Trade in the Liverpool Record Office’ has been issued on four microfilm reels. KM was the special editor for this project.

Filming has been completed for a BRRAM title on ‘The American Correspondence of Arthur C. Murray with Franklin D. Roosevelt,’ based on manuscripts at the National Library of Scotland, Edinburgh. The special editor, Dr Tony McCulloch (Canterbury Christ Church University), expects to complete his introduction by December 2007. This title should therefore be released early in 2008. The Canadian Papers of the 4th Earl of Minto are to follow the Murray correspondence, with Dr McCulloch as special editor.

KM and RV are pursuing an offer by Dr Natalie Zacek (University of Manchester) to prepare a BRRAM on the manuscripts of Samuel Martin, a sugar planter in 18th-century Antigua. Dr Zacek’s CV was circulated amongst the Publications Subcom for their approval, which was unanimous. MAP has a formal agreement from the British Library to publish this title, but the contracts for this project still need to be signed.

KM and RV are still awaiting agreements from Rhodes House Library, Oxford over publication of further United Society for the Propagation of the Gospel papers, principally in relation to Canada and the West Indies. These manuscripts are extensive. The USPG archivist has agreed that the documents can be filmed at MAP in Wakefield, but a decision on this is still awaited from Rhodes House. Once an agreement has been reached, we can try to identify appropriate special editors.

In June 2007 Nigel Le Page, the Managing Director of MAP, visited Jamaica to discuss the possible microfilming of records held at the University of the West Indies, Mona; the National Library of Jamaica, Kingston; and the Jamaica Archives, Spanish Town. These meetings elicited a promising response. RV has followed up the visit with letters to the relevant archivists, in the hope that manuscripts already filmed in Jamaica could be released by MAP, some in the BRRAM series. KM has sent RV a detailed list of items from British archives relating to Jamaica that have been filmed and deposited in the Special Collections at UWI, Mona. MAP hope to release some of these microfilms in the BRRAM series.

KM observed that the back catalogue of BRRAM titles only sells intermittently. In order to increase sales of this material, KM has supplied RV with the names of several high profile universities and research libraries in the USA that are not currently standing order customers but whose microfilm holdings are directly related to the material we are filming for BRRAMs. These are: the Huntington Library; the John Carter Brown Library; the Newberry Library; the UCLA Research Library; and the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation. MH asked the committee to list other libraries that might possibly be interested and forward to him via email. In turn, he will forward to KM and RV.

(b) Edinburgh University Press (EUP)

Mark Hulsether’s book, Religion, Culture and Politics in the Twentieth century United States has now been published and it is co-published in US with Columbia UP (thereby increasing the print run by 2,500 extra copies).

CS informed MH that the editorial process has started on Celeste-Marie Bernier’s book, African American Visual Arts from Slavery to the Present.

(c) Journal of American Studies

MH reported that John Matlin had stepped down from his role of Editorial Assistant at JAS and is to be replaced by Dr Bevan Sewell.

MH also drew the committee’s attention to the fact that a new manuscript review form has been drawn up which will be useful to manuscript reviewers; a copy of this new form had been circulated at the JAS editorial board meeting on 28 September 2007.

MH mentioned that it had been noted that JAS had been low on 20th Century History submissions; the committee was asked to disseminate that more articles are needed in this area; further to this the committee was asked to encourage submissions in art, music and philosophy.

MH also noted that there had been 3% drop in paper subscriptions to the journal but a rise in electronic subscriptions, which was to be expected and will be a continuing trend.

MH noted that in terms of the JAS Editorial Board Professor David Seed’s term has come up for renewal. As Professor Seed is happy to be renominated, the committee is happy to ratify this (MH is to discuss further with SC).

Emily Miller Budick’s term has come to an end and a replacement is required in the area of 19th Century American Literature.

(d) American Studies in Britain (ASIB)

CM and MH visited Dr Alison Kelly to complete the handover of files and information in August completed in summer.

The deadline for the next edition is 15 January. Submissions should be sent to Dr Kelly at her work email only: alison.kelly@rai.ox.ac.uk.

CM reported that there had been slight problems with dispatching the current edition as the postal company which she had formerly used had gone out of business. This will shortly be remedied and the Autumn edition of ASIB will be dispatched within a fortnight.

(e) US Studies Online

MH reported that the plan to go to three issues per year (rather than the current two) has been put off until 2008.

Elizabeth Boyle has written to MH to report that the next edition of US Studies Online was going well due to a collection of very good papers from the Nottingham BAAS Postgraduate Conference.

Elizabeth Boyle will also attend the Manchester Postgraduate Conference this month with a view to sourcing future articles for the journal.

(f) BAAS Website

As of yet there have been not been any serious expressions of interest in taking over the running of the website. Further discussion under BLARs business.

10. Conference Subcommittee (SM reporting)

Business mainly concerned the Edinburgh Conference:

(a) RM has received between 60-70 proposals already so far; the deadline for proposals is 15 Oct and he is, as is seemingly customary, expecting to receive a deluge of proposals around this date.

(b) In terms of plenary lectures, it is now confirmed that the Eccles Lecture will be offered by Professor Peter Dickinson on John Cage (Music).

(c) RM has also sent out the final CFP for the conference.

(d) The costs for the conference have now been finalised. It will cost £300 for BAAS members; the retired members’ fee will be covered by Gift Aid revenue. RC has a bid outstanding which will cover the postgraduate subsidy.

(e) Accommodation with different standards of en suite is available; RM is to make decision on how this will be offered to delegates (following further discussion with the Conference Subcom) when the conference registration document is drafted.

(f) A conference committee at Edinburgh is now in place but there are gaps on it to be filled; the Edinburgh support team is also now in place.

(g) RM raised the issue of the cost of placing the conference paper abstracts. GT suggested that cost of postgraduate help for this should be rolled into the overall costs for the conference.

(h) The entertainment at the Edinburgh conference will be a céilidh The Conference Subcom also raised the issue of BAAS disco as possibly too expensive to continue for future conferences.

(i) The dates for the Nottingham 2009 conference are 16-19 April. The Nottingham accommodation is booked and it is all en suite.

(j) The issue was raised regarding the necessity for conference organisers to regularly attend the Conference Subcom meetings. SM noted that the official timetable for conference organisation suggests that organisers start attending meetings two years in advance of the conference.

11. Awards Subcommittee (IS reporting)

(a) The MA Teaching Assistantships have been advertised. All publicity now includes Peter Boyle’s name. IS confirmed that interviews will be held in December.

(b) The ongoing issues regarding the Teaching Assistantship in English at New Hampshire (to complement the award in History) have been resolved insofar as the two best applicants for the literature assistantship will each be offered places at either the University of New Hampshire or the University of Virginia.

(c) IS is currently in conversation with California State University at Fresno regarding a Teaching Assistantship Award.

(d) IS mentioned the need for a 3-person interview panel and this is subject to an ongoing email discussion amongst the committee. It was noted by HM that officers are required to sit on specific awards panels.

(e) IS has contacted Clare Elliot regarding a call on the mail-base for BAAS Awards judges more generally.

(f) The Awards Subcom has seen a draft of the awards guidelines which are to go on the website in the next week; the need for references for the STA prize has been highlighted in the new guidelines.

(g) Members of the Awards Subcom have seen electronic versions of all the Awards publicity – this will go out in hard and electronic copy. The cost has been confirmed at marginally under £500. Electronic copies are to go out in the next week and hard copies in next few months.

12. Libraries and Resources Subcommittee (DE reporting)

(a) DE began his report by offering thanks to his predecessor Ian Ralston, to the BLARs committee and to BAAS more generally for their very hard work.

(b) The issue of institutional membership had originally been raised by DE and the BLARs committee and had now been resolved (see 6.f under Treasurer’s Business).

(c) BLARs are very happy with the transfer of budget issues to GT.

(d) DE reported that the Resources in American Studies Journal, whilst always struggling for funding, looked in good condition this year with income from the US Embassy; the Editor has set a film theme for next edition (interested contributors are requested to contact Matthew Shaw at the British Library)

(e) BLARs has proposed a panel proposed on web research (e.g. Intute) for the Edinburgh conference. Alternatively they can offer a panel on open access and intellectual ownership, etc. The committee agreed that it would be more timely to take the latter through to Nottingham 2009.

(f) DE raised the issue of the BAAS website, mentioning that there was a feeling in BLARs that the BAAS website is a very important resource and crucial to teachers and academics alike. However, concern was expressed that it needs reinvigoration (while recognising that this is an increasingly onerous task). DE suggested that this has become such a complicated task that it may now require paying someone to put some work into it.

(g) GT responded that the entire committee will need to have a discussion about what the website is to do and what we want it to do. This is very important as expanding and improving the website will limit who can do it (in terms of IT expertise). The committee will also need to decide whether we want to pay for it. This, in turn, raises issues regarding the other unpaid jobs such as the editorships of American Studies in Britain and US Studies Online.

(h) IS mentioned that this was raised at Leicester and the committee discussed the possible need for further personnel on the BAAS Executive Committee to handle these increasingly time-consuming jobs. GL suggested a one-off revamp and then the appointment of key staff to keep this regularly updated.

(i) HM asked BLARs for a specific proposal with detailed points to focus discussion. DE agreed to head up a discussion regarding what is required of the website, areas for potential improving, etc.

(j) DE also raised the issue of the BLARs identity, signalling a need to address what BLARs is about in terms of its remit and vision. This will enable BLARs to outline a trajectory for the future. DE and GT to confer on setting up a discussion board on the BAAS website for the committee and BAAS members to contribute to this discussion.

13. EAAS

(a) PD re-circulated the call for papers for the EAAS Oslo conference.

(b) PD also added an announcement of the BAAS conference and the American Politics conference to the EAAS newsletter.

(c) The fee for Oslo set at 95 euro (approximately £62 – this excludes accommodation). A full list of participants will be printed in the coming week.

14. Any Other Business

The Eccles Centre have recently circulated a poster promoting American Studies; two copies send to every school in the country. More available if needed (contact Professor Phil Davies)

15. Date of next meeting

11 January 2008 at Nottingham. Subcommittees will commence at 10.30am

Dr. Catherine Morley
email: catherinemorley@brookes.ac.uk
Office Phone: (01865) 484977