Call for Papers

[Michael Adams]

Dear Colleagues,

I hope that many of you will attend the Modern Language Association convention in Philadelphia this year, and that some of you will present your current research in sessions sponsored by the American Dialect Society at the MLA convention.

If you would like to be on the MLA program, please send an abstract to MAdams1448 at aol.com by 20 March 2004.

Since time immemorial, the MLA has been host to many important sessions on American speech.  Recently, several papers presented at the convention have appeared in the "Journal of English Linguistics," "American Speech," and elsewhere.  In an age of criticism and theory, it's up to the American Dialect Society to put the "language" back into "Modern Language Association."  If you plan to attend the convention, or if you would attend were you to present a paper, please submit an abstract.

One important note:  you must be an MLA member to present a paper at the MLA convention, and your membership must be registered by 1 April 2004 for this year's convention.

Year by year, fewer ADS members attend the MLA convention.  It has become increasingly difficult to fill the ADS sessions at MLA, as a result. If you are planning to attend, PLEASE submit an abstract so that American speech continues to be an aspect of the MLA program.  Our sessions are always well-attended; MLA members are clearly interested in what ADS members have to say about American speech, but they won't hear anything if we can't fill the sessions with interesting papers.

Recently, I've been elected to the MLA Delegate Assembly, the MLA's governing body.  My sole interest in taking this responsibility is to promote study of American English, but my job will be much harder if there's no ADS presence at MLA.

So, once again, please, PLEASE submit an abstract if it's at all consonant with your scholarly plans.

With all best wishes (and high hopes),

Michael