This is an academic conference and we welcome participation from scholars based in universities and elsewhere with an interest in the work of M. G. Vassanji and its connections to the African and South Asian diasporas.
The conference fee covers attendance at the sessions as well as refreshments and lunch (Saturday only) throughout the day. Spaces are limited and we urge people to register early to secure a place.
Conference fee: £50.
To register for the conference, please follow this link: http://www.open.ac.uk/ccig/payments/mgv
Note: Those registering for the conference do not need to register separately for the public lecture.
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The Transnational Imaginaries of M G Vassanji
School of African and Oriental Studies, University of London, London, UK
November 8-10, 2013
Programme
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Friday – 8 November
6.00-7.30 p.m. SOAS
Khalili Lecture Theatre
Keynote lecture by M G Vassanji
Assimilation – The Dream and Reality: The Case of the Asian African
Book Signing and Reception
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Saturday – 9 November
9.15 Arrival and coffee
Session 1: 9:30 to 12:00 SOAS, Vernon Square, Room VG06
Chair: Itesh Sachdev, University of London, UK
John Clement Ball – University of New Brunswick, Canada
The Place of Partition in Vassanji’s Writings on India
Asma Sayed, University of Alberta, Canada
Between Languages: A Bakhtinian Reading of M G Vassanji’s Novels
Harish Narang – Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, India
From Haripir to Haripur: Problems of Plurality in The Assassin’s Song
Dan Ojwang – University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg
Vassanji’s Experiments in Ecumenical Secularity
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Lunch 12:00 to 1:00
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Session 2: 1:00 to 3:30 SOAS, Vernon Square, Room VG06
Chair: Stephanie Jones, University of Southampton, UK
Gaurav Desai – Tulane University
`Ye Zindagi Usiki Hai’: Illicit Desire and (Post)colonial Romance in M.G. Vassanji’s The Book of Secrets.
Jonathan Hart – University of Alberta, Canada
M G Vassanji and the Typology Between Tanzania and Canada
Vera Alexander – University of Copenhagen, Denmark
Heterotopian Travels in M G Vassanji’s Writings
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Coffee Break – 3:30 to 4:00
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Session 3: 4:00 to 6:00 SOAS, Vernon Square, Room VG06
Chair: Margret Frenz, University of Oxford, UK
Maya Parmar – University of Leeds, UK
The Book of Secrets: The Dancing Diaspora and Encoding Culture
Jonathan Rollins – Ryerson University, Canada
Roots, Routes, and Rhizomes: Diasporans, Nomads, and Tourists in M G Vassanji’s The Magic of Saida
Joseph Pivato – Athabasca University, Canada
Reconstructing History in The Magic of Saida
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Sunday – November 10
Session 4: 9:00 to 11.00 SOAS, Vernon Square, Room VG06
Chair: Karim Murji, Open University, UK
Mala Pandurang – SNDT Women’s University, Mumbai
Reading Vassanji’s Women: Across time, location and interstitial identities
Neelima Kanwar – H. P. University, Shimla, India
History and Philosophy: Metaphysical concerns in The Assassin’s Song and The Magic of Saida
Alia Somani – Centennial College, Toronto
Diasporic Nostalgia and the Complexity of the Everyday: M. G. Vassanji’s African Fiction
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Coffee Break: 11:00 – 11:30
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Session 5: 11:30 – 1:00 SOAS, Vernon Square, Room TBA
Chair: Asma Sayed, University of Alberta, Canada
Delphine Munos – University of Liège, Belgium
M G Vassanji’s A Place Within: Thinking through India, Transnationally
Annie Cottier – University of Bern, Switzerland
Songs, Poems, Legends: Cosmopolitan Moments in M. G. Vassanji’s The Assassin’s Song
1.00 Networking – Conference over