RMMRA Newsletter
Fall 1997
Next year’s RMMRA conference will take place in Big Sky, Montana, June 3-7, 1998.
Organized by Sharon Beehler and Sara Jayne Steen under the auspices of Montana State
University, the theme is “Goodly Worlds: Places, Topoi, and Global Riches.” All papers and
proposed sessions on this theme or of related interest in the fields of Medieval and Renaissance
Studies are welcome, including pedagogical sessions. As you can see from the enclosed Call for
Papers, proposals for complete sessions are due 1 December 1997, and for papers, 28 February.
All members are encouraged to disseminate this Call for Papers to others who may be interested.
And by all means let the organizers know if there is someone not on our mailing list who would like
more information.
Big Sky is a ski and summer resort located just 18 miles north of Yellowstone National
Park. In addition to first-rate conference facilities and accommodations, Big Sky offers
many recreational activities. Hiking and geyser-watching in the spectacular scenery of
nearby Yellowstone are options, especially since in early June the Park is not yet crowded.
Or you may choose to take a professionally-guided raft trip down the Gallatin River
where Robert Redford shot “A River Runs Through It,” play the 18-hole golf course
designed by Jim Palmer, or play tennis. Mountain biking, horseback riding, and camping
are all available, making this a wonderful opportunity in June for a family vacation in
conjunction with the conference.
In this issue...
Breck Award: Apply Now
Wanted: Applications for Journal Editor
$100 Reward for Journal Name
1997 Conference
JRRMA News
Invitation to Join
Breck Award: Apply Now
The winner of the 1997 Allen D. Breck Award was Jesse Swan for his essay presented at the 1996
RMMRA conference entitled, “A Woman’s Life as Ancillary Text: The Biography of Elizabeth Tanfield
Cary.”
The Breck award, instituted by our previous president, Sarah Jayne Steen, carries an award of
$300 and publication of the winning essay in the Journal of the RMMRA. To apply, you need to be a
graduate student or assistant professor who presented a paper at the Banff conference in spring, 1997. The
deadline for applications has been extended to January 1, 1998. Please send three copies of your paper as
presented (minor changes are permissible) to Susan Frye, Dept. Of English, P.O. Box 3353, University of
Wyoming, Laramie, WY 82071. She will then forward them to the Prize Committee.
Wanted: Applications for JRMMRA Journal Editor
The resourceful and hard-working Catherine Corman Parry will step down as journal editor in
the next year, so that we will soon be accepting applications for the position of Editor of the
JRMMRA. Applications will be considered in early June at the Big Sky meeting. This is a
wonderful opportunity for a scholar who would like to shape the future of the journal as we
approach the next century. The Editor forwards articles to appropriate members of the editorial
board for review, makes judgments about publication and production matters, and serves as an
officer of the RMMRA. The RMMRA pays for Journal production costs (typesetting, printing,
packaging, mailing), while the Editor’s institution provides general support (general photocopying,
telephone, any student or staff assistance). If you would like to know more or would like to make a
statement of preliminary interest, please write to Susan Frye at the address in the paragraph above
or by e-mail at frye@uwyo.edu.
$100 Reward for Journal Name
For several years now the Executive Committee of the RMMRA has been considering whether
our organization should change the title of our journal in a way that would make it clear that it is
far more than a “regional” publication. At some institutions, regional publications are not weighed
as heavily in tenure and promotion decisions as national or international journals, a fact that may
have an impact on the number of submissions that we receive. We need a name that communicates
the inter-disciplinary nature of our organization, and the fact that it spans both the Middle Ages
and Renaissance. At the same time, we have been concerned that in order to maintain current
library subscriptions, we need to keep JRMMRA somewhere in the title — perhaps before or after a
colon.
Although over time the Executive Committee has come up with a variety of suggestions, it
seems fair to offer all members an opportunity to participate in this process. In order to spur our
creativity, a reward of $100 is being offered for the title that is selected at our June conference. If
you wish to submit a title, please check first to be sure that it is not currently in use as a periodical
name. You may send suggestions to Susan Frye at frye@uwyo.edu or to any other executive
committee member, or pass them along on the first day of the conference. The winner will be
announced at Big Sky.
1997 Conference
RMMRA members gathered May 15-18, 1997 at the Banff Conference Center to meet on the
theme of “The Multi cultural Middle Ages and Renaissance: A Dialogue of the Disciplines.” Three
dozen different sessions competed for our attention, from “Medieval French” and “Golden Age
Spanish Literature” to “Cultural Interconnections” and “Culture and Context: Teaching with
British Women Writers.” This year’s stimulating plenary speakers included Lynne Magnusson
(University of Waterloo), Jetske Sybesma (University of Alberta), Jean-Michel Mehl (Université
des Sciences Humaines, Strasbourg), Philip Pulsiano (Villanova University), and
Paul Stevens (Queen’s University). Set in the Canadian Rockies and featuring a trip on Saturday
afternoon to Lake Louise, this conference epitomized the RMMRA’s ideal of combining
spectacular Western scenery with first-rate intellectual stimulation. Many thanks are due to Jean
MacIntyre, who so splendidly organized this conference, and to the supporting institutions that
made it possible: the University of Alberta and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research
Council of Canada.
JRRMRA News
Volumes 16 and 17 will be published close to one another early in 1998. Editor Catherine
Corman Parry invites members of the Association to submit articles to her c/o the Department of
English, Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah 84602. Please submit three copies of your essay;
when you submit, you may expect a reply in approximately four months.
Invitation to Join
If you join the RMMRA now, your subscription to the Journal of the Rocky Mountain
Medieval and Renaissance Association will be entered for the next available issue. Please note that
all conference presenters need to be members of the Association. Please address your request (with
$20 dues) to Kenneth Graham, Secretary, Department of English, New Mexico State University,
Las Cruces, New Mexico 88003.
Last Name _________________________________
First Name ________________________________
Field (e.g., Art History, French Literature): _______
__________________________________________
Department: ________________________________
Institution: _________________________________
Office Address: _____________________________
Office Telephone: ___________________________
E-mail address:______________________________
Home address: ______________________________
__________________________________________