Humanities scholars from across the region converged on StFX September 22 and 23 to attend the annual conference of the Atlantic Medieval and Early Modern Group, a regional scholarly organization devoted to studying and teaching the medieval and early modern periods, a time that spans over 1,000 years from 400CE-1700CE.
“The group includes scholars from across disciplines. At this year’s annual conference, we were proud to feature work from art historians, literary scholars, philosophers, historians, and graduate students. We even had a wonderful presentation from one of our own honours students, Clara O’Callaghan, who is currently completing her undergraduate honours thesis in history at StFX,” say this year’s conference organizers, Dr. Joseph Khoury and Dr. Laura Estill, both of StFX’s Department of English. Ciara Wainwright, a StFX English undergraduate and co-president of the English Society, supported the event’s organization.
The annual conference is hosted by a new institution each year. The last time it was hosted at StFX was in 2015, organized by Dr. Khoury. Next year, the conference will take place at Acadia University.
“This event showcased StFX as a hub for the humanities, displaying our top research and teaching,” say Dr. Estill and Dr. Khoury.
“The wide-ranging support for this event, from the Dean of Arts, the Academic Vice President, the Research Services Office, the Department of English, the Department of Philosophy, and the Angus L. Macdonald Library, shows how we can pull together across units and disciplines in order to foster academic discussions, while also participating in the broader intellectual community of our region.”
The conference was attended by participants from across the region, including people who travelled in from Memorial University of Newfoundland, St. Bonaventure University (New York State), the University of Prince Edward Island, St. Thomas University, and the University of New Brunswick. From Nova Scotia, participants joined from Dalhousie and the University of King’s College, as well as StFX. Forty people participated in the conference in various ways, giving talks, attending panels, and joining in the vibrant scholarly discussions, organizers say.
Dr. Khoury and Dr. Estill say they were pleased to feature the work of students during the event, both graduate and undergraduate, and both in the presentations and behind the scenes.
The opening reception included a tour of special collections at StFX’s Angus L. Macdonald Library, facilitated and led by Laurinda Matheson and Susan Cameron, both of StFX’s library.
“Participants were fascinated to learn about the rare books held here, including an early French edition of Henry Fielding’s Tom Jones and minutes from miners working at the Springhill mine,” Dr. Estill says.
Dr. Khoury hosted the convivial closing reception at his home, where discussions about literature, history, and society continued.
The event was described as the “best yet” by attendees, say Dr Khoury and Dr. Estill, who will be editing a journal special issue based on the presentations at the conference. Even though the conference is over, more work is yet to be done.
