Lehigh Valley

Conference to bring Edgar Allan Poe scholars from around the world to New York

The Poe Studies Association (PSA) will host its fourth International Edgar Allan Poe Conference Feb. 26 to March 1 at The Roosevelt Hotel in New York City. The conference brings Poe scholars from around the globe to share their research on one of the most famous and best-loved American writers whose influence still inspires the arts throughout the world. Scholars from 24 countries will attend from as far away as Japan and the People's Republic of China to Russia to Algeria to Iceland.

The PSA's past international conferences have been hosted in cities where Poe lived and worked: from the first conference held in Richmond in 1999, to the Baltimore area in 2002, to Philadelphia in 2009, and this year in New York City, where Poe enjoyed fame from his publication of “The Raven” and ownership of a literary magazine, “The Broadway Journal.”

The conference will begin with a reception in the Palm Room of the Roosevelt Hotel on Thursday evening. Three days of scholarly panels will follow, and on Saturday night a banquet will be held in the Grand Ballroom of the Roosevelt featuring a talk by J. Gerald Kennedy, Boyd Professor of English at Louisiana State University and acclaimed Poe scholar. The conference will have a book exhibit, and Richmond's Museum of Edgar Allan Poe will have an onsite shop.

The Poe Studies Association, established in 1972, provides a forum for the scholarly and informal exchange of information on Edgar Allan Poe, his life and works. It currently has a membership of approximately 280, which includes scholars and Poe enthusiasts from the United States and abroad. The PSA meets at the yearly conferences of the American Literature Association in May and the Modern Language Association in January.

For registration information, visit http://www2.lv.psu.edu/psa/Conference2015/.

Media inquiries may be directed to Barbara Cantalupo, associate professor of English at Penn State Lehigh Valley and conference co-chair, at bac7@psu.edu.

Edgar Allan Poe portrait. Credit: Penn StateCreative Commons

Last Updated February 11, 2015

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