Schedule

  • 10:00-11:00
    Online
    Literary Urban Studies: A Conversation with Jason Finch
    Jason Finch’s new book, Literary Urban Studies and How to Practice It, is the first textbook in literary urban studies (LUS). It illuminates and investigates this exciting field, which has grown since the humanities’ ‘spatial turn’ of the 1990s and 2000s. The book introduces city literature, urban methods of reading, classics in LUS and new directions in the field. In this conversation, we’ll explore LUS with Jason Finch and consider how its archives and methods might apply specifically to those of us working in suburban Atlanta. 
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    1:00-2:15
    ALC 4200  
    Cento (Collage!) Poetry Workshop 
    In keeping with the symposium’s theme of hybridity, the cento—a poetic form composed entirely of lines from other poems—is as avant-garde as it is ancient. It’s a poetic homage-collage, a verbal patchwork ripe for reading pleasure and play. The aim of this workshop is generative; following a brief discussion of the form and examples, we will start stitching our own centos. Choose from a selection of poems provided or come prepared with a handful of your favorites. No previous poetry experience required; this workshop is welcome to all. Come to think, read, and rearrange. Come to recharge and to play. We hope to see you there!
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    2:30–4:30
    EB 274   
    Reimagining the Urban Narrative: An Interactive Journey Exploring the African American Imprint on the Southern Cultural Landscape    
    Working with traditional non-scribal texts (images, video, and audio), we will create “flash fiction” TikTok or Instagram narratives based on reinterpreting these media. Participants are encouraged to consider the context of MODA Atlanta’s Hip Hop Architecture exhibit, the Sweet Auburn District and the Civil Rights movement. We will then share our stories and discuss the evolving experience and representation of African American culture in the urban South. Devon Woodson, a musician, community leader and the 3rd generation owner of legendary Atlanta blues bar Pals Lounge will share his experiences.
  • 3:00–4:00
    EB Atrium
    Poster Presentation 
    4:00–5:30
    SO 236  
    Paul Jenkins on The Future of Storytelling
     Paul Jenkins is a British born comic writer who lives in Atlanta, GA. He began his career at Mirage Studios working on Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Jenkins has written some of the biggest characters for Marvel and DC Comics, including Spider-Man, Batman, Incredible Hulk, and Hellblazer. He is best known for reviving The Inhumans as part of Marvel Knights and creating The Sentry for Marvel Comics. Jenkins also writes for video games on hits like The Darkness, Incredible Hulk, and Prototype. 
    6:00–8:00
    Social Hour at Mellow Mushroom (1133 Chastain Road NW)
    Come hang out and have a slice or two of pizza on the English Department! Location: https://mellowmushroom.com/location/ga-kennesaw-1133-chastain-rd-nw-30144/ 
  • 11:00-12:15
    Online
    “Artificial Intelligence, the Modern Frankenstein,” Hybridity and Plurality in Technological Advancement with Ludovic Mompelat  
    Personal assistants, and very recently ChatGPT (OpenAI), have shaken the entire world with their ability to understand human language and produce human-like utterances, and it has become evident that artificial intelligence (AI) plays and will continue to play an important role in our everyday life. However, because AIs do not “think” like humans, common knowledge and reasoning can sometimes get lost in translation and we are still far from systems capable of understanding the world the way humans naturally do.  

    Artificial intelligence and personal assistants (Siri, Alexa, Google assistant) are plural systems that lie at the intersection of linguistics and technology, and Computational linguistics (CL) is the field that combines these facets of AI. In this talk, Ludovic Mompelat will describe the inherent hybrid nature of AI systems, show how his research in CL contributes to bridging the gap between AIs and humans, and how he uses the latest technologies to create and develop language resources and computational tools for under-resourced languages, especially creole languages. 
    1:00–2:00
    EB 250
    Waymark Write-In: Exploring Real Cities in Virtual Spaces
    Waymark Write-In: Exploring Real Cities in Virtual Spaces will focus on the relationship between the urban city and poetry. Looking through a virtual map, participants will have a chance to explore a city of their choosing before going on to discuss the use of poetry in the city. Afterward, the writers will write their own original poems on their city and can read them aloud if they so please, or dissect what they had written. 
    2:15–3:15
    EB 268  
    Literature, the Labyrinth, and The City 
    Cities, with their maze-like networks of streets and infrastructure, have been described and even deliberately designed as labyrinthine spaces. Troy, Jericho, Rome, Istanbul, Sforzinda, Paris, Dis, Minneapolis-St. Paul and more—the crossroads of literature and labyrinths are full of twists, turns, and wonders.  

train with the reflection of a city pulled by a tricycle

hybridity and the city logo

Hybridity & the City | a symposium on LITERATURE, NEW MEDIA, and ART in CIVIC LIFE

As the Atlanta metropolitan area continues to grow, expanding cultural offerings, employment opportunities for creators, and influence in global culture, Kennesaw State University’s Department of English invites our faculty, students, and friends to participate in a symposium exploring the relationship between literary culture, new media, popular culture, art, and urban environments.  
 
How do cities like Atlanta inspire poetry, pop culture, and public art? What makes urban areas urbane and humane? What does identity look like for an individual or a community within the context of a city, suburb, or other designed space? How does the spread of urbanization into the suburbs and beyond affect the lived environments of humans and animals, and of ecology more broadly? 

Keynote Speaker

  • Paul Jenkins

    Paul Jenkins

    Paul Jenkins is a British born comic writer who lives in Atlanta, GA. He began his career at Mirage Studios working on Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Jenkins has written some of the biggest characters for Marvel and DC Comics, including Spider-Man, Batman, Incredible Hulk, and Hellblazer. He is best known for reviving The Inhumans as part of Marvel Knights and creating The Sentry for Marvel Comics. Jenkins also writes for video games on hits like The Darkness and Incredible Hulk. 

    Presenters

    • jason finch

      Jason Finch

      Jason Finch is Associate Professor, English Language and Literature, at Åbo Akademi University. Previous books include E. M. Forster and English Place (2011), Deep Locational Criticism (2016) and, as co-editor, Literary Second Cities (2017). A founder member of the Association for Literary Urban Studies (ALUS), from 2019–22 he is Principal Investigator for Finland on the project ‘Public Transport as Public Space in European Cities’ (PUTSPACE), funded by the ERC’s HERA programme. Jason’s literary urban research interests include London, housing representations and public transport
      • ludo mompelat

        Ludovic Mompelat

        Ludovic Mompelat’s research interests encompassed by his double PhD in French Linguistics and Computational Linguistics include Sociolinguistics, Language Contact, Creole Languages, Syntax, Corpus Linguistics, Natural Language Processing, and Machine Learning.
        • devon lee woodson

          Devon Lee Woodson

          Devon Woodson is a musician, community leader and the 3rd generation owner of legendary Atlanta blues bar Pals Lounge located in the historic MLK Jr. district on Auburn Avenue in Atlanta, Ga. He is also the president of the Fourth & Sweet Auburn Neighborhood District Association.
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