Periodic Reporting for period 1 - EUTERPE (European Literatures and Gender from a Transnational Perspective)
Reporting period: 2022-10-01 to 2024-09-30
The aim of EUTERPE (European Literatures and Gender in Transnational Perspective) is to offer an innovative approach to contemporary European women’s literature by proposing a framework for a transnational feminist literary theory and transnational feminist literary criticism. Currently, European literature is still predominantly seen through the prism of national literatures. But at times of intense migration, there is a huge production by authors who write “outside the nation,” and their works invite critical reading ready to engage with specific qualities of transnational literature. The EUTERPE project proposes to offer such an interpretative framework, which also calls for a critical rethinking of the established borders of national literatures in view of a more inclusive category of European literature. Built around transnationalism and gender as key concepts, the project proposes an interdisciplinary perspective in which the other related concepts like multilingualism, translation, migration, borderlands, cosmopolitanism, diaspora and others come together to create a theoretical background for critical readings of selected literary texts.
Focusing on works of self-identified women writers who published after 1970s, the project hopes to offer a comprehensive view of major theoretical questions related to transnationalism in literary studies, and a critical reading of some major transnational authors that are influential in the field of European literature at present. This task is to be done through individual and collective research projects of both senior and junior participants in the work of the EUTERPE consortium. Individual projects refer in the first place to the research of 11 Doctoral Candidates who are employed across the consortium and who are expected to produce 11 monographs in the field of transnational literary studies; other separate individual research results are also to be expected both by senior and by junior researchers. The overarching impact output of the EUTERPE consortium will be the open-source publication of The Handbook of Transnational Women’s Literature in Europe, as well as and online Digital Catalogue and Podcast Library, with large amount of new research data and new sources in the field.
Focusing on works of self-identified women writers who published after 1970s, the project hopes to offer a comprehensive view of major theoretical questions related to transnationalism in literary studies, and a critical reading of some major transnational authors that are influential in the field of European literature at present. This task is to be done through individual and collective research projects of both senior and junior participants in the work of the EUTERPE consortium. Individual projects refer in the first place to the research of 11 Doctoral Candidates who are employed across the consortium and who are expected to produce 11 monographs in the field of transnational literary studies; other separate individual research results are also to be expected both by senior and by junior researchers. The overarching impact output of the EUTERPE consortium will be the open-source publication of The Handbook of Transnational Women’s Literature in Europe, as well as and online Digital Catalogue and Podcast Library, with large amount of new research data and new sources in the field.
As defined in the Project’s DoA, research work done by EUTERPE is structured around 8 research WPs set within 4 large areas of interest for transnational literary studies:
I. Transnational women’s literature and its travels: points of entry and pathways
II. Translational genres: crossing borders in gender, form, space, and identity
III. Transnational women intellectuals, multilingualism and decolonising European pedagogies
IV. Transnational literature and cultural production: intermediality as a form of translation.
The thus far biggest success of the project when it comes to doctoral training is that all of 11 Doctoral Candidates employed across the EUTERPE consortium are successfully developing their research projects in accordance with their academic calendars. 10 DCs have started their training in action month 12 that is September 2023, and they are currently in the second year of their studies with already well-developed research projects; one DC started in action month 24 that is September 2024, so she is still developing their thesis prospectus, in accordance with the local study plan. All DCs successfully work with their Supervisory Teams consisting of: supervisor(s) at the host university; supervisor(s) at the secondment university; an Expert Advisor as a part of consortium wide training; and n Employability Mentor who works with the DC on a compulsory Employment Enhancement Plan/Career Development Plan. During their studies, the DCs must undertake the main training at their home university, 6 months secondment at a host university, and 2 months of internship at an industrial Associated Partner organization. Some of the DCs have already started with their secondment, and the others are planning to do that in the upcoming calendar year. Apart from fulfilling all the academic requirements at their home universities, DCs have by now participated in several consortium-wide events, including 2 Summer Schools and 1 Spring School organized by UNIOVI, LODZ and CEU. Through these consortium-wide events DCs are getting shared knowledge on the issues related to transnational perspective in literary studies. During the Transnational Literary Research Laboratory sessions, which run parallelly with the training schools, the DCs get transferable skills trainings that further enhance their future employment potential. During these occasions they also share their research experiences and jointly discuss theoretical and practical questions that are of mutual interest.
Consortium-wide events are also important forums for group research projects of EUTERPE, allowing consortium members to plan and discuss jointly the work ahead. Both senior and junior researchers, including Doctoral Candidates, are a part of these discussions, and they are expected to contribute collectively to EUTERPE’s main impact outcomes, The Handbook of Transnational Women’s Literature in Europe, as well as the online Digital Catalogue and Podcast Library.
Work on these main results is another important achievement of the project. At this point, the focus is on the Handbook, which is planned as a two-volume publication, with the first volume dedicated to literary theory, and the second to literary criticism. The work is at an advanced planning stage, with editorial boards established, the main framework of the publication set, and majority of contributions agreed upon. The research for most of the contributions to the Handbook is still in its operation phrase, and the contributions are expected in the third year of the project. EUTERPE Doctoral Candidates are also working on entries for The Handbook of Transnational Women’s Literature in Europe, as well as preparing material for the Digital Catalogue and Podcast Library.
I. Transnational women’s literature and its travels: points of entry and pathways
II. Translational genres: crossing borders in gender, form, space, and identity
III. Transnational women intellectuals, multilingualism and decolonising European pedagogies
IV. Transnational literature and cultural production: intermediality as a form of translation.
The thus far biggest success of the project when it comes to doctoral training is that all of 11 Doctoral Candidates employed across the EUTERPE consortium are successfully developing their research projects in accordance with their academic calendars. 10 DCs have started their training in action month 12 that is September 2023, and they are currently in the second year of their studies with already well-developed research projects; one DC started in action month 24 that is September 2024, so she is still developing their thesis prospectus, in accordance with the local study plan. All DCs successfully work with their Supervisory Teams consisting of: supervisor(s) at the host university; supervisor(s) at the secondment university; an Expert Advisor as a part of consortium wide training; and n Employability Mentor who works with the DC on a compulsory Employment Enhancement Plan/Career Development Plan. During their studies, the DCs must undertake the main training at their home university, 6 months secondment at a host university, and 2 months of internship at an industrial Associated Partner organization. Some of the DCs have already started with their secondment, and the others are planning to do that in the upcoming calendar year. Apart from fulfilling all the academic requirements at their home universities, DCs have by now participated in several consortium-wide events, including 2 Summer Schools and 1 Spring School organized by UNIOVI, LODZ and CEU. Through these consortium-wide events DCs are getting shared knowledge on the issues related to transnational perspective in literary studies. During the Transnational Literary Research Laboratory sessions, which run parallelly with the training schools, the DCs get transferable skills trainings that further enhance their future employment potential. During these occasions they also share their research experiences and jointly discuss theoretical and practical questions that are of mutual interest.
Consortium-wide events are also important forums for group research projects of EUTERPE, allowing consortium members to plan and discuss jointly the work ahead. Both senior and junior researchers, including Doctoral Candidates, are a part of these discussions, and they are expected to contribute collectively to EUTERPE’s main impact outcomes, The Handbook of Transnational Women’s Literature in Europe, as well as the online Digital Catalogue and Podcast Library.
Work on these main results is another important achievement of the project. At this point, the focus is on the Handbook, which is planned as a two-volume publication, with the first volume dedicated to literary theory, and the second to literary criticism. The work is at an advanced planning stage, with editorial boards established, the main framework of the publication set, and majority of contributions agreed upon. The research for most of the contributions to the Handbook is still in its operation phrase, and the contributions are expected in the third year of the project. EUTERPE Doctoral Candidates are also working on entries for The Handbook of Transnational Women’s Literature in Europe, as well as preparing material for the Digital Catalogue and Podcast Library.
The main impact outcomes and results of the EUTERPE project are expected by the end of the project; hence it is too early to speak about actual impact at this point. The Project hopes to make a radical intervention in the state of arts when it comes to understanding, interpreting, and teaching contemporary European literature and contemporary women’s literature. Members of the Consortium have been promoting the project and the ideas it is based upon from the very start of the project in various venues, as described in the Continuous Reporting. More intense promotion, participation in relevant conferences with the project results and presence in other relevant platforms is expected in the upcoming two years.