Symposiums & Conferences

Folklore & Mythology holds an annual event aimed at exploring a thematic topic.  These events range from one-day symposia, to multi-day conferences.

 

2023: Appalachia Betwixt & Between: Folkloristic Perspectives on a Region in Flux

Friday, April 19, 2024 - 6:30pm - 9:30pm
Saturday, April 20, 2024 - 9:00am - 8:00pm
Thompson Room, Barker Center

Still from film "King Coal"

This year’s Symposium explores the folklore of Appalachia — past and present — to understand how the expressive culture of one region can enliven understandings of local, national, and transnational relationships to and through place. Appalachia has a storied relationship to national narratives of progress. Often imagined as the quintessential place of authentic, White, poor America, the region is, in fact, a place in flux, with cultural traditions shaped by and reflecting the many groups who call, and have called, Appalachia home. This conference convenes leading and emerging scholars for conversations about the role of folklore and the work of the folklorist in a future-oriented Appalachia. We highlight dynamic folkloristic scholarship and work from folklore-adjacent fields to tell better stories about this much-storied region and its peoples. As an additional treat, we are thrilled to partner with the Mahindra Humanities Center and the Salata Institute for Climate and Sustainability to bring Elaine McMillion Sheldon's newest film, King Coal (2023), to Harvard.

 

(See the event page for a preliminary schedule!  Free and open to the public.)