CFP for book chapters: “The Mississippi: Soundings on America’s Arterial River.”

Call for Papers: The Mississippi: Soundings on America’s Arterial River 

Edited by A. Robert Lee and Chad Weidner 

Introduction and Scope: 

The Mississippi River, often regarded as America’s central artery, has been instrumental in shaping the nation’s geography, culture, and history. This edited volume, The Mississippi: Soundings on America’s Arterial River, aims to explore the river’s vast influence, tracing its course from the headwaters at Lake Itasca in Minnesota to its expansive delta at the Gulf of Mexico. 

Through a multidisciplinary approach—encompassing geography, ecology, history, culture, and literature—we invite contributors to examine the river’s profound impact on Indigenous communities, the legacy of slavery, its strategic significance during the Civil War, and its enduring role in American literature and mythology. This collection will document the Mississippi’s rich past while offering comparative and global perspectives, including those of other major rivers and deltas, underscoring its ongoing relevance as a cultural and environmental cornerstone in the American experience. 

Core Inquiries: 

1. Location: How exactly do we locate the Mississippi inside the wider geography of America—its route north to south, its position through the various states, its spatial relationship to the land, its connection to climate and irrigation? 

1. Myth and Identity: In what ways do the myths, legends, and popular representations of the Mississippi River contribute to contemporary understandings of American identity? How do these narratives compare and contrast with the historical experiences of Indigenous peoples and Afro-American communities along the river? 
2. Global River Comparisons: How can comparative studies of the Mississippi River with other major world rivers and their deltas, such as the Nile, Amazon, and Yangtze, offer fresh insights into the river’s role in global trade, cultural exchange, and environmental stewardship? What lessons can be drawn from these comparisons to address contemporary challenges facing the Mississippi? 
3. Ecological Narratives: How have the diverse ecological zones along the Mississippi River—from the Upper Mississippi headwaters to the expansive delta of the Lower Mississippi—shaped distinct environmental narratives and influenced human interactions, land use, and conservation efforts throughout its course? 

Topics may include but are not limited to: 

• Geography of the Mississippi: Upper, Middle, and Lower Mississippi; Lake Itasca to Gulf of Mexico 
• Ecological Mississippi: River ecosystems and environments 
• Indigenous Mississippi: Anishinaabe naming, settlements, and Native histories 
• Sold Down the River: Afro-American history, slavery’s legacy along the river 
• Colonial and Explorer Mississippi: Spanish, English, French explorations 
• Civil War Mississippi: Strategic importance during the war 
• Trade Routes and Steamboats: Navigation, commerce, and steamboat development 
• Mississippi River Bridges and Crossings: Engineering and cultural significance 
• Crossing Through Ten States: Influence on towns, cities, and habitations 
• Literary Mississippi River: From Melville and Twain to Faulkner. Contemporary authorship. 
• Mississippi as Myth: Cultural mythology, symbolism, and popular references 
• Weather and the Mississippi River: Impact of floods, storms, heat, and freezing conditions 
• Environmental Justice: Ecological challenges and impacts on communities 
• The Mississippi in Visual Art: Artistic depictions of the river 
• Cinematic Mississippi: Film portrayals and public perceptions 
• Delta Blues: Cultural and musical legacies of the Mississippi Delta 
• The River as Refuge: Migration, escape, and refuge narratives 

Submission Guidelines: 

Submit a 250–300-word abstract summarizing your chapter’s main thesis, analytical framework, and cultural or historical context. Include 3-5 keywords that capture the primary subjects or areas of inquiry. 

Submit abstracts to both: 

• arobertlee24@gmail.com 

• chadweidner@gmail.com 

Abstract Submission Deadline: December 1, 2024 Full Chapter Submission Deadline: May 15, 2025 Feedback: July 1, 2025 Revised Chapter Submission Deadline: September 1, 2025 

Editor Bios: 

A. Robert Lee A British scholar, formerly of the University of Kent, UK, and Nihon University, Tokyo. His books include Designs of Blackness (1998, 25th Anniversary Edition, 2020), Multicultural American Literature: Comparative Black, Native, Latino/a and Asian American Fictions (2003, American Book Award), Modern American Counter Writing (2010), and Native North American Authorship: Text, Breath, Modernity (2022). 

Chad Weidner An American/Belgian scholar specializing in ecocriticism and the Beat Generation. His books include Greening Bohemia: The Environmental Arc of Beat Generation Literature (2024), Fractured Ecologies (2020), and The Green Ghost (2016). He co-founded the European Beat Studies Network and lectures on film, media, and rhetoric in the Netherlands. 

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