Syriac Studies

Call For Papers: We invite proposals for one general session for which papers on any aspect of Syriac Studies are welcome. In addition, we invite papers for two thematic sessions: one on poetics, and the other on death and dying, which are described in further detail below. 1. Poetics: Scholars have recently given much attention to the two primary metrical forms of late antique Syriac literature, madrashe and memre. For example, scholars are asking how these literary modes developed over the course of late antiquity, in what specific contexts and for what particular performative uses, with what inflection or consequences for content, and how they relate to different poetical genres. Papers are invited to address this changing understanding of late antique Syriac poetry and its implications for the literary, social and cultural issues of late antique Christianity more broadly. 2. Death and Dying: Death is a topic of perennial interest for scholars. Scenes of death and dying in the Bible have generated rich and poignant work in biblical studies and in the history of interpretation. Scholarship on ancient Christianity has long focused on martyrdom as a lens for considering death. Recently, interest has turned to more personal and direct encounters. This emphasis on dying and death in the context of daily life is in part fuelled by the current discussion of emotions. However, death is also an important part of Christian moral exhortation (paraenesis), for example in the ample homiletical literature advocating care for the poor. Scholars are invited to submit proposals that address issues of death and dying as we see it presented in Syriac evidence. Papers are welcomed that address the topic through any extant evidence: literary, material, archaeological, documentary.

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