Call for Proposals: IPLAI Fall 2013 Independent Reading Groups

The Institute for the Public Life of Arts and Ideas (IPLAI) invites proposals for informal reading groups in the interdisciplinary humanities. IPLAI will provide space for approved seminars, and help with organization and advertising.

Groups will:

1. Be led by at least one, preferably two, McGill faculty members and/or graduate students who will be responsible for organizing and chairing seminars, locating texts, etc.
2. Meet at IPLAI at least six times between 16 September and 18 December, according to a regular, advertised schedule.
3. Attract a regular, interdisciplinary core membership – though not all members need attend every meeting, and seminars should also be open to non-core participation from other interested parties.
4. Adhere to a specific theme, and address a challenging writer, a literature, or a series of texts with appeal across disciplinary boundaries. (Here, ‘text’ may include a range of media, including visual art, film, music, etc.)

Proposals will include:

1. A title for the seminar and a brief statement of purpose. What is the goal of the seminar? What questions/problems will it address? Who is expected to attend? Will the seminar serve a need not otherwise addressed by existing on-campus programs?
2. A provisional text list.
3. The names and affiliations of committed seminar leaders.

Deadline for proposals for the fall series: 15 August 2013

Send proposals at .doc, .docx, or .pdf files to iplai [at] mcgill.ca.

For a list of previous reading groups, visit the IPLAI site here.