MGSA 2011, the twenty-second biennial international symposium of the Modern Greek Studies Association, will take place October 13-16, 2011 in New York, and will be coordinated by the Hellenic Studies Program at New York University (http://hellenic.as.nyu.edu/page/home)

Abstracts for individual papers and proposals for entire panels are invited on any aspect of modern Greek culture, literature, language, history, society, politics, economics, and the arts.

THE SOCIETY FOR MODERN GREEK STUDIES

invites members and non-members to its

Annual Open Meeting

on Saturday 15 May 2010

The event will take place in the Lecture Theatre of the Ioannou Centre for Classical and Byzantine Studies, University of Oxford, 66 St Giles', Oxford OX1 3LU

PROGRAMME

2.00p.m ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING of the Society (members only)

3.00p.m. WELCOME by the Chair of the Society, Prof. Marc Lauxtermann

3.15p.m. LECTURE by Professor Roderick Beaton on "From Frankenstein to Missolonghi: why Byron went to Greece"

4.00p.m. TEA

Call for papers for a conference on

THE PERSONALITY CULTS OF MODERN DICTATORS

Institute for Germanic and Romance Studies, University of London

22-23 October 2010

Almost all modern dictators are the subject of personality cults that are highly organised even if they often also rest on spontaneous contributions. By creating a narrative of exceptionality around an individual they harness support and help consolidate a regime. The forms cults take depend on national traditions and histories, patterns of gender relations, and the existence or otherwise of an articulated civil society. In this sense, they are cultural as much as political phenomena. The highly specific nature of each cult means that comparative work is rare. The aim of this conference is to compare different aspects of many cults of personality, and, by so doing, raise new hypotheses of research and lay the foundations for new potential interdisciplinary collaborations.

Scattered off the west coast of mainland Greece are the seven Ionian Islands, celebrated for their spectacular landscapes, olive groves and classical associations. Together with the mountainous mainland region of Epirus, the combined populations of Corfu, Paxos, Lefkas, Ithaca, Kefalonia, Zakynthos and Kythira constitute less than a twentieth of the population of Greece, yet they have made a huge contribution to the culture of the country, before and since becoming part of the Greek state. The unsurpassed beauty of the islands and of the Pindus Mountains has stimulated the imagination of countless writ- ers and artists from Homer to Byron, Edward Lear and the Durrells, Louis de Bernières and Nicholas Gage, as well as scores of nineteenth-century travellers.

Drawing a mosaic portrait of the Ionian Islands and special places of interest in Epirus, Corfu resident Jim Potts focuses on the landscapes, legends, tradi- tions and historical events that have appealed most strongly to the imagina- tions of writers, residents and travellers.

In 1945 the modern country and people of Greece were unknown to many Britons. This book explores the transformation and varying fortunes of Anglo-Greek relations since that time. The focus is on the perceptions and attitudes shown by British and Greek writers, audiences, and organisations. Greece and Britain Since 1945 has contributions from leading academics, journalists, novelists, and public servants. Subjects covered include: literature by Greek writers in English translation; the work of the British Council and international aid agencies; and television series set in Greece.

Please sign online the petition at the following URL:

http://www.petitiononline.com/sdbmgs10/petition.html

THE UNIVERSITY OF BIRMINGHAM
INSTITUTE OF ARCHAEOLOGY & ANTIQUITY
THE SOCIETY FOR MODERN GREEK STUDIES

&

CENTRE FOR BYZANTINE, OTTOMAN & MODERN GREEK STUDIES

2010 Graduate Research Colloquium in Modern Greek Studies

CALL FOR PAPERS

This year’s Graduate Research Colloquium will take place at Birmingham University (Lecture Room 8, Arts Building) on Thursday 17 June 2010. Contributions may be in any area of Modern Greek Studies, including literature, history, linguistics, anthropology, media studies etc., or they may be of an interdisciplinary nature.

SOUTH EAST EUROPEAN STUDIES AT OXFORD
European Studies Centre, St Antony's College

SEESOX SEMINAR SERIES
HILARY 2010
Changing Identities in South East Europe
Convenors: Othon Anastasakis and Renée Hirschon
The seminar explores the various ways in which changing identities have been affected by political, economic and social
pressures in the Balkan peninsula, and seeks to assess the responses at regional, national and local levels. The aim is to
contribute towards a better understanding of the diverse forces which shape identities in a period of accelerating change.

The annual Voices event at the University of East Anglia is taking place on 28 February 2010.

Date and venue: 29 May 2010, Room 2, Taylor Institution, St Giles, Oxford, U.K.

Duration: 1 day

Organiser: Erato Basea, D. Phil. Candidate, Faculty of Modern and Medieval Languages, St Cross College, University of Oxford

Aims and Scope:
Current Trends in Greek Cinema is a one-day conference to be held on May 29, 2010, sponsored by the Department of Modern Languages and the Sub-faculty of Modern Greek, at the University of Oxford.