Dottorato in STUDI IN LETTERATURE, LINGUA E TRADUZIONE
INGLESE

The term “crisis” has been traditionally employed to describe isolated moments in time–temporary phenomena, or momentary disruptions in the steady flow of events. Yet, looking at our contemporary world, everyone can easily reckon with the fact that crises have become endemic conditions, rather than episodic events; they can no longer be conceived as singular moments of chaos, as they represent a more persistent and constant state of disruption. As we navigate an era marked by rapid globalization, technological change, abhorrent conflicts, and environmental disasters and devastation, crises of every kind have become increasingly common and are now part of our daily lives. A state of chronic crisis–or “permacrisis” , to put it in Brown et al. (2023)’s words–has, indeed, been characterizing at least the latter part of the 1990s and the majority of the 21st century, imbuing our present with feelings of panic, uncertainty and unrest. In addition to the economic downturns, climate emergencies, and geopolitical disruptions that affect our everyday lives, a new anxiety has recently emerged: the ontological truth appears, to the general public, inaccessible, everything rewritten and perfectly constructed either by AI, manipulated media, or discourse online. What are we supposed to make of our world if we cannot access the Truth? Consequently, how can we address the crises that affect and afflict our present if we cannot interpret them or create our own narratives around them? Moreover, how do crises of knowledge and post-truth influence our understanding of reality and impact our ability to engage meaningfully with both current events and historical narratives?

This is precisely where the Humanities play a crucial role, as they help us navigate our contemporary world, cope with the disasters and crises that we inexorably face, as well as interpret both reality and the narratives that shape our understanding of it. This is why with this Graduate Forum, we aim to spark a discussion not only on the representations of contemporary crises in literature, language and translation, but also on the possible actions and responses we can employ in the face of these ongoing crises. Addressing the diverse and multifaceted ways in which crises continuously impact our daily lives, the organizers of the Graduate Forum of the 38th cycle of the PhD programme in Studies in English Literatures, Language and Translation welcome contributions from the fields of literary studies, linguistics, and translation studies that explore the varied and multilayered concept of crisis. In particular, these contributions could seek to illuminate the many facets of the current permacrisis by examining it through literary texts and media that address contemporary issues related to post-truth, environmental challenges, migration, diasporic experiences, and (minority) identities. They could also reflect on how language is affected and shaped by states of crisis, as demonstrated by political discourses, linguistic policies in conflictual regions, and translation in emergency contexts. Additionally, we welcome proposals that aim to explore the multifarious crises of the past and their representation across centuries and cultures. Listed below, you can find more specific areas and topics of interest that intersect with the concept of crisis, but we also welcome proposals that integrate these areas with different topics: