MORE PRIDE, LESS PREJUDICE: JANE AUSTEN AT 250
Faculty of Arts and Humanities I University of Porto
2-3 October 2025
Keynote Speakers
Fiona Stafford (University of Oxford)
John Mullan (University College London)
On Jane Austen’s 250th anniversary we invite scholars/enthusiasts to join us at the University of Porto for a two-day celebration of both her literary genius and enduring legacy. As an inescapable figure in the English literary canon, and a popular cross-generational phenomenon, Jane Austen has always been the subject of the most diverse and innovative academic approaches. Scholars have explored various aspects of her work, from the ways in which her novels negotiate femininity (Cho 2006; Steiner 2012) and subvert prevailing notions of masculinity during the Romantic era (Ailwood 2019; Woodworth 2024) to the deep psychological complexity of her characters (Mullan 2005). Additionally, research has examined Austen's engagement with the medieval tradition of courtly love (Schubert 2023) and the significance of garden landscapes within her narratives (Bending 2024). Uncountable cinematographic and television adaptations, as well as retellings of Austen’s novels have catalyzed the development of studies concerning the intermediality of her work (Martin 2007; Cartmell 2010; Sutherland 2011; Ursa 2018). These varied lines of enquiry underscore the enduring relevance and complexity of Austen's contributions to literature. Her works being products whose critical fortunes inevitably surpass the author’s own time and geography, it is the aim of this conference to foster new and thought-provoking (re)interpretations of the Austenian corpus – namely the novels that brought her fame – and the lenses through which it can be revisited in our day and age.
We thus welcome papers on all aspects of the author’s life, and encourage contrasting perspectives on her oeuvre. Possible topics include (but are not limited to) the following :
● Afterlives: translations, adaptations, transmediations (e.g., films, TV/streaming series, retellings, video games, fanfiction, etc);
● Global Austen;
● Jane Austen’s life (family, education, juvenilia);
● The rise of the novel: books and reading practices;
● Landscape(s) and travelling;
● (Re)Defining masculinities;
● Womanhood, girlhood & rebel women (or not so much);
● Regency life: fashion, manners, sociability;
● Economy: love and the marriage market;
● Language, style and structure;
● Critical responses (early and recent);
● Literary scene: from sentimental to gothic;
● Nationalism, war and empire;
● Digital Humanities;
● Conventions and transgressions.
We welcome 250-word proposals for 20-minute presentations in English at morepridelessprejudice@letras.up.pt. Please include a short bio (max 150 words, including the author’s academic affiliation). The deadline for abstract submission is 16 May 2025.
The standard conference fee is 80 euros. A reduced fee of 30 euros is available for students. The conference will be held in person at the Faculty of Arts and Humanities of the University of Porto. All delegates are responsible for their own travel arrangements and accommodation.
More information available in due course at https://sites.google.com/view/morepridelessprejudice/.
MORE PRIDE, LESS PREJUDICE: JANE AUSTEN AT 250 is organised by