Mern Þonke

Just when I’m getting back into regular posting after dealing with technical problems, there is about to be another posting hiatus. This is because I am leaving tomorrow to go to the 39th International Congress on Medieval Studies in Kalamazoo, MI (AKA the Zoo). This annual ritual, in which thousands of medieval scholars converge on a small (and very underprepared) town in the midwest has perhaps become the defining institution in the field: where all its colour (and can you believe a conference of medievalists is quite colourful), oddity (the pseudo-society “alternative” session comes to mind), and, frankly, seriously good scholarship surfaces from the paper and print on which the personalities of medievalists appears outside the classroom. Not that anybody sees this, apart from a few overwhelmed service workers in a small midwestern town. But it’s a joy to go every year. I have only two complaints: (1) every year it coincides with my birthday, and (2) there appears to be only one working espresso machine in the town.

This year I am chairing a session on racial, ethnic, and religious identity in medieval England, a theme that I began last year and will probably make a regular event, since it seems to be quite successful. I’m also giving a short introductory paper in a session on the Middle English poem Havelok the Dane. Both sessions are on the first day, so I’m looking forward to being able to relax and have fun after that. However, I may have to do a bit of work, as I’m trying to meet a deadline of 14 May for getting an article done.