November 11, 2009
Yufang’s and my wedding may not have been science fictional, but I did take care of some pre-scheduled science fiction business in Atlanta, Georgia during the week after our honeymoon. I went to the annual Society for Literature, Science, and the Arts conference where I presented a paper on invention/authoring of the tank. Unfortunately, the posthumans, Whiteheadians, and animal studies folk drowned out the military technologies panel–so it goes. To make up for it, I made a point of visiting the da Vinci exhibit at the High Museum of Art, which reminded me that da Vinci had imagined a armored, mobile weapons platform long before Wells’ 1903 short story, “The Land Ironclads.”
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Posted by Jason Ellis
May 31, 2009
I just sent off my presentation proposal for SLSA 2009, which as the theme “Decodings” and will be in Atlanta, Georgia in November. Since I’ll be teaching and reading for my PhD exams, I decided to dust off a publishable paper to shorten and present at the conference (assuming it’s accepted). In the meantime, I think I’m going to send this essay out to a journal over the Summer to see if they are interested in publishing it as it is or with minor revision. Here’s my abstract to SLSA:
Decoding the Origins of the Tank and “The Land Ironclads”: Sir Ernest Dunlop Swinton and H. G. Wells
Jason W. Ellis
The first popular, and widely cited, fictional account of the military tank is H.G. Wells’ 1903 short story, “The Land Ironclads.” The recognized and widely circulated literary publication, the Strand Magazine published Wells’ short story in 1903–thirteen years before the British tank was unveiled to the world at Flers and Courcelette on 15 September 1916 during the First World War’s Battle of the Somme. However, Wells was not involved in the actual development of the tank, but many historians point to Major-General Sir Ernest Dunlop Swinton as the single person most responsible for convincing the British military to design and commit invaluable war time resources to its development and utilization in the Great War. Interestingly, these two persons–Wells and Swinton–developed a public debate in print and other media, which eventually led to Swinton’s libel suit against Wells, over who was most responsible for the invention of the tank. It is the purpose of this presentation to highlight their public debate, and uncover how the public reacted to these men’s claims. From this very public argument it will be possible to decode the meaning of such claims to invention, and the early history of Science Fiction, which was in part buttressed on imaginative futurology.
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Posted by Jason Ellis
November 16, 2008
The conference was a lot of fun, and I’m glad that I got to hang out with Pawel, Michael, De Witt, Matt, Hannah, Amanda, and Cat. I passed out a lot of SFRA bracelets, brochures, and conference announcements, so I hope to see some of you not-yet-SFRA members, but soon-to-be SFRA members next year in Atlanta. Oh, Cat and I rocked our panel, and thanks to the audience members and their questions and discussion!
After a relatively easy eight hour drive from Charlotte to Kent today, I arrived home safely for a much needed nap before going to dinner with Yufang. I have some work to catch up on tonight before class tomorrow, but I have plenty of notes from SLSA. Expect a proper write-up over the next few days.
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Posted by Jason Ellis
November 13, 2008
After an 8 hour drive, I arrived in Charlotte last night around 10pm. The drive wasn’t too bad, but the night driving through West Virginia was terrible for two reasons: poor road construction created a rough ride and a lot of noise, and eyes were constantly assaulted by cars with the high beams on.
There were a lot of people in the lobby carousing and having a good time, but I don’t know if they were here for SLSA or for another nefarious purpose. I can’t say that I’ve recognized anyone yet, but SLSA is a big conference compared to others that I have attended.
The OMNI Charlotte hotel rooms are very nice, and my view overlooking a plaza bordered by high rise buildings makes me think of Asimov’s The Caves of Steel–it makes you feel hemmed in.
Thus far I only have one complaint–croissants. As a Select Guest member, I received free coffee, orange juice, and a newspaper delivered to my room. They also offer special prices on breakfast items. I thought a croissant for $3 was a great deal, especially for a hotel, so I ordered two of them. This morning, I discovered why they are only $3–they are smaller than the home bake Pillsbury croissants available in grocery stores. Luckily, Yufang sent me away with small packets of Famous Amos cookies, which made up for the unfortunate state of room service breakfast. I’ll search google maps for a near-by bakery or grocery store so I can stock up on breakfast goods. What can I say–breakfast is an important meal for me.
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Posted by Jason Ellis
November 12, 2008
I’m driving down to Charlotte, North Carolina for the annual Society for Literature, Science, and the Arts conference. This is the second time that I’ve presented at SLSA. My presentation last year was on “Subversive Subjectivity in Battlestar Galactica,” and this year I’m presenting on the political efficacy of “transsexual technologies.” There are several concurrent panels during my session’s time slot on Saturday, so I’m wondering what the turnout will be like, and what reception my paper will receive. I’ll post about the conference, time permitting, from Charlotte. However, I have two papers to write while I’m there in addition to attending sessions, so my updates may have to wait until I return to Kent.
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Posted by Jason Ellis
