CFP: Graduate Conference, "Die ewige Wiederkehr des Vampyrs / The Eternal Return of the Vampire"

Julian Wong-Nelson Discussion

The Rutgers Ph.D. Program in German Studies Presents:
Die ewige Wiederkehr des Vampyrs / The Eternal Return of the Vampire
March 3-4, 2023
Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ

Keynote Speakers:
Dr. Laurence Rickels (The European Graduate School)
Dr. Elisabeth Bronfen (University of Zurich & NYU)
“Stay here… the Master comes.”
– Renfield, Herzog's Nosferatu

From the corpse-occupying vetelas of Hindu mythology to the child-eating Lamia of the Ancient Greeks, the she-demon Lilith of the Hebrews, the medieval Lord Vlad of the Romanians, the blood-thirsty count of Stoker’s Dracula, the shape-shifting monster of Bachmann’s “Heimweg," the diamond-skinned, sullen-faced Edward Cullen of Meyer’s Twilight, the ever-resourceful vampire survives each staking and refashions itself according to the whims of the contemporary blood pool.

Fluent in all languages and apt in all media, equally at home in übergory horror and borderline whimsical softcore, the vampire will be coming for you too. Marking the centennial of F.W. Murnau’s seminal Nosferatu, the conference aims to map and make sense of the cross-historical/cultural fascination with the fang and the neck and all they signify. We are looking for submissions especially, though not exclusively, on the following topics:

❖ F.W. Murnau’s Nosferatu and its afterlives
❖ Vampire, desire, terror
❖ Vampires and (failures of) mourning
❖ Capitalism as vampirism
❖ Vampires and difference — racial, ethnic, sexual, gender
❖ Contagion and virality

The deadline to submit an abstract of 300 words and a bio of 100 words is January 10, 2023. The selected participants will be notified by January 24, 2023. Participants are expected to deliver a 30-minute talk, followed by a Q&A. The conference will take place in-person in New Brunswick, NJ. Although we cannot cover travel and accommodation costs, we will do our best to help with such arrangements.

Artun Ak (aa2332@scarletmail.rutgers.edu) and Chaitrali Kulkarni (csk104@greell.rutgers.edu) are the organizers of this conference. You can send your submission to either of us, and please do not hesitate to reach out with any questions you may have.