CFP: Reading Girls (Chapters addressing the TV series "Girls", including e.g on masculinities)

Call for Papers – Edited Book Title: Reading Girls Abstract submission deadline: 1 June 2015 Editors: Meredith Nash and Imelda Whelehan, University of Tasmania Email: girlsedited@gmail.com Premiering on HBO to critical acclaim in 2012, Lena Dunham’s cable television series Girls is a candid and comical look at the lives of four young women living in Brooklyn, New York. Following in the footsteps of the earlier post-feminist, woman-centred television series, Sex and the City (SATC), Girls explores numerous feminist themes centring on an exploration of what it is like to be a white New York woman. However, compared to SATC, the show is a coming-of-age story with the characters awkwardly hovering between adolescence and adulthood. Although the title Girls perhaps symbolises a post-feminist sensibility, its appearance in the opening credits in bold uppercase lettering subverts the pejorative nature of the word “girl” and demonstrates a knowing irony that permeates the show and perhaps an unwillingness to leave feminism behind so easily. Yet questions remain: Who are the ‘girls’? And what do they stand for? Where does feminism fit into the show? Whether a fan or a critic, the show has generated an enormous amount of discussion and controversy in the global media. We are interested in chapters that draw on feminist/gender studies perspectives to respond to and discuss: • any aspect of the show (Seasons 1-4) • comparisons between Girls and other woman-centred TV shows • public controversies raised by the show • Lena Dunham as the show’s creator/writer/director/producer Possible chapter topics include: • Female/male friendship • Bodies/embodiment • Feminism/postfeminism • Sex/Sexuality • Mental health • Race/Ethnicity/privilege • Self-entitlement • Social class/post-recession • Narrative • Consumerism • Work/employment/underemployment • Satire • Confessional writing/Memoir/diaries • Millennial femininities • Digital feminisms • Reproductive ‘choices’ • Sex/romance • Masculinities/femininities • Third wave/girl power/digital activism • Second wave feminism/personal is political • Intertextual postfeminism • Feminist hauntings We have had interest in this collection from two high-profile global publishers and we anticipate signing a contract shortly after the contributor list is finalised. Interested authors are invited to submit chapter proposals (approx. 300 words) and a short biographical sketch by 1 June 2015. If accepted, final submissions of no more than 6,500 words (including notes and references) must be submitted by 15 December 2015. Please send abstracts or queries directly to: girlsedited@gmail.com