Call For Papers: Who Gets To Dream?

POSTGRADUATE SYMPOSIUM 2026/27 TRINITY LONG ROOM HUB 16/01/27
The Irish Association for American Studies (IAAS) invites postgraduate and early-career researchers across the humanities to join us for our annual symposium. This event seeks to interrogate the dark underbelly of the American promise. We wish to examine how the structures of race, class, gender, sexuality, and citizenship turn the American Dream into a nightmare for different communities, both historically and in the contemporary moment.

WHO GETS TO DREAM?
"I DON'T SEE ANY AMERICAN DREAM. I'VE EXPERIENCED ONLY THE AMERICAN NIGHTMARE" - MALCOLM X, 1964

THE AMERICAN DREAM
has long stood as the foundational mythos of the United States-a glittering promise of upward mobility, self-determination, and meritocracy. Yet, this dream has never been universally accessible. For many, the relentless pursuit of this ideal has led not to prosperity, but to systemic violence, displacement, disillusionment, and exhaustion. As Malcolm X sharply observed in 1964, the "dream" is often a privilege of the few, sustained by a lived "nightmare" for the marginalized.  This symposium is designed to be a supportive, constructive and collaborative space for postgraduate and early-career researchers. We encourage sumbissions from scholars at any stage of their PhD or Master’s journeys.

Suggested Themes & Topics
We welcome 15-minute papers from disciplines including literature, history, film and media studies, cultural geography, political science, art history, and critical theory. Potential topics may include, but are by no means limited to:
The Marginalized Nightmare: Intersectional critiques of the Dream (race, gender, sexuality, and class).

The Cost of the Golden Land: Immigrant, migrant, and refugee experiences of disillusionment and exploitation.

Geographies of Exclusion: Segregation, displacement, reservation systems, and the nightmare of land loss.

Capitalist Gothic & Labor Exploitation: The physical and mental toll of the "hustle" and the illusion of meritocracy.

Cinematic and Literary Nightmares: Horror, noir, and dystopian representations of American life in popular culture.

The Transatlantic Gaze: Irish and European perspectives on, and migrations toward, the American mirage.

Resisting the Nightmare: Radical activism, civil rights, protest movements, and the struggle to redefine American freedom.

Submission Guidelines
We welcome proposals for individual 15-minute papers. Please submit an abstract of max. 250 words and a short biography (50 words) to postgrad@iaas.ie Submission deadline:  Midday, Sunday 29 November