Program Overview

Program Overview

The Winter School "Social Turn in der Literatur(wissenschaft)?" is an international academic event that aims to initiate a dialogue between young researchers from various philologies. The goal is to revisit the unresolved question of the relationship between literature and society and to discuss sociocritical tendencies in contemporary literature.

Project Description

The Winter School took place from December 3 to 5, 2014, and was organized by doctoral students from the Graduate School 'Practices of Literature' and the doctoral program 'Literaturtheorie als Theorie der Gesellschaft'. The project received funding of 4600 and brought together young researchers from Germany and abroad, including Egypt and England.

Objectives and Outcomes

The Winter School aimed to explore possibilities for revitalizing literary interest in socio-historical and literary-sociological issues. The event featured eighteen contributions that discussed current trends in international literature and presented new perspectives on literature after 'Kulturalismus'. The project achieved its objectives, contributing to the visibility of the University of M³nster and sparking numerous discussions and publications.

Research Areas

The Winter School focused on the following research areas:

• The representation of the financial crisis, poverty, and precarity in literature
• The political in pop culture
• The role of literary criticism and feuilleton
• The social function of literature and its elite social status
• The power of the book market and privileged social classes over literature production

Conclusion

The Winter School demonstrated the legitimacy of the question about a possible 'social turn' in literature and literary science. The event inspired controversial discussions and led to the planning of a follow-up international conference to further explore the research perspective. The project's success and the positive feedback from participants and the research community suggest a promising continuation of the project.