UWF Hosts Brit Lit Symposium for Faculty and Students

Pensacola – The Department of English at the University of West Florida held a symposium Oct. 14 called “British Romantic Literature and Culture.”

David Baulch, UWF associate professor of English, moderated the event.

Dr. Tim Fulford, professor of English from De Montfort University of Leicester, United Kingdom, researches Romantic literature within the context of colonialism, landscape, exploration and the picturesque. He discussed English painter and illustrator Richard Westall and the evolution of prints in books during the Romantic era.

Fulford also talked about how those prints told whether the owner was wealthy or not. Engravings were expensive, especially those in color, and were usually owned by wealthy people. They were rarely found in middle class homes. Black-and-white engravings were more affordable.

Dr. Julia S. Carlson, professor of English at the University of Cincinnati, was also invited to present at the symposium. Carlson’s research is based in impression and inscription in Romantic-Era Britain, as well as historical poetics in Romanticism. The professor discussed the emotions that emerge when reading Samuel Johnson’s poems. She also analyzed old maps from Britain’s Romantic era.

The symposium integrated Carlson and Fulford’s presentations with conference-style panels, featuring work from faculty, graduate and undergraduate students.

“By presenting their work alongside that of professionals, I want to give our students an experience where their work can enter into a conversation with that of our distinguished guests,” Baulch said.

Graduate and undergraduate students discussed each other’s work on various English Romantic authors, which helped them expand their own research.

“It’s been very informative and helpful for me,” said Terry Griner, a graduate student in English, who presented his work on literary British slavery. “She (Carlson) just talked about ideas, and all of those things help me as I…expand this paper.”

Written by: Juliana Lievano, Student Intern for CREO.