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28-29 May 2026 Metz (France)
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Call for papersCall for papers Identity Construction and English(es) from the Margins 28–29 May 2026 University of Lorraine (Metz, France)
“[A]mong the many symbolic resources available for the cultural production of identity, language is the most flexible and persuasive” (Bucholtz & Hall 2004: 369). From employing certain phonetic features to index alignment with a particular social group, to assembling discourse in a personal narrative that signals allegiance to a given community, via the use of specific words to set oneself apart from others (among an infinite myriad of other examples), language sits at the heart of the performance, (re)production, and contestation of our social identities, both individual and collective. In the current configuration of the global sociolinguistic climate, English might be considered as having a special role in this cultural production of identity, used as it is in an almost infinite diversity of situations by an almost infinite diversity of speakers across the planet. Whether is be as a first language, an additional language, a component of monolingualism or multilingualism, a national language, an official language, a global lingua franca in a seemingly endless range of domains, English is a language that, for better or for worse, finds itself deeply intertwined in dynamics relating to local, national and global identities around the world today. It is both a language of domination, a tool for imposing the identities of power, and a language of resistance, a medium of expression for marginalised voices. It is this final point that this interdisciplinary conference aims to explore: the specific role(s) of English(es) in the elaboration, expression and preservation of social identities among individuals or groups situated on what might be termed the “margins” or the “peripheries”. Drawing upon the widely-used spatial metaphor that “refers to the unequal distribution of power in economy, society and polity, stressing the domination/dependency relations between different regions of the world” (Vanolo 2010: 30), the objective of this conference is to centralise the discourses and language practices of marginalised populations. How do marginalised groups and individuals make use of English(es) in establishing, sharing, strengthening and protecting their individual and/or collective identities? In what way do linguistic specificities within English(es) contribute to the emergence of phenomena of sameness and/or difference in these contexts? How is English used as a linguistic tool when it comes to affirming marginalised identities and/or resisting those of a dominating centre? We take marginalisation to refer to, on one hand, the multiple processes by which groups and/or individuals are excluded from meaningful participation in social, economic, political and cultural life and, on the other hand, symbolic processes in which certain behaviour or practices come to be labelled as “marginal”, “perceived by others as deviating from what is perceived to be the ‘norm’” (Messiou 2012: 11), thus affecting behaviour towards individuals or groups partaking in such behaviour or practices. In both cases, marginalised individuals and groups find themselves doted with inferior cultural capital compared with those that constitute the “centre”, the practices and behaviours of this latter group coming to form the norms and standards against which anything else will be perceived as deviant, a potential object of marginalisation and/or discrimination. As bell hooks (1984: i) observes, most of those on the margin must align with these central norms/standards as well as engaging in so-called “peripheral” practices that allow for cultural identity production on the margins. The objective of the Identity Construction and English(es) from the Margins conference is to propose a focus on the English language as a means of investigating these “peripheral” practices, the relationships and tension between these practices and “central” norms and standards, and the ways in which social actors navigate between centre and margin, core and periphery, in processes of cultural identity construction. Our approach to this objective is resolutely intersectional. Indeed, much previous research has shown how language is deeply intertwined with processes of marginalisation and identity construction in relation to gender (see Jones 2016, Motschenbacher, H., & Stegu, M. 2013), sexuality (see Angouri & Baxter 2021), race (e.g. Rosa 2019) and/or ethnicity (see Fishman & Garcia 2010), disability (e.g. Galvin 2003, Grue 2015), neurodivergence (e.g. Rebecchi 2025), social class (see Snell 2014), among many other parameters. This conference aims to add to this body of work by exploring the role(s) of English-language discourse(s) and/or specific English language practices in these different processes, whether it be in relation to one of the above parameters, other parameters, or the ways in which different parameters intersect (e.g. Levon & Mendes 2016, Block & Corona 2016). This intersectional approach is accompanied by an interdisciplinary ambition. While the focus of the conference remains on English language and discourse, thus appealing to (socio)linguists, discourse analysts and those working in related fields, we hope to also bring together researchers specialising in literature, gender/queer studies, cultural studies, Black studies, sociology, anthropology, history, information science, to name but a few fields. As such, we welcome propositions dealing with a wide variety of media and/or types of discourse and language practices. By way of example, these could include audio and/or video recordings, ethnographic studies, extracts from “traditional” media (film, TV, press, etc.) and/or “new” media (social networks, forums, applications, etc.), different forms of political discourse (speeches, pancarts, slogans, pamphlets, etc.), various manifestations of artistic expression (poetry, music, performance art, etc.), literature (either originally written in English or translated), educational material, semiotic analyses of non-textual media (colour, clothing, emojis, etc.) or corporal movement (sign language(s), gesture, drag performances, dance, etc.), etc. These lists of fields of study and of possible objects of study are not to be perceived as exhaustive, but rather as a small sample of the domains and media that we hope to explore during the conference. Questions which we might hope to explore during the conference (as well as those set out above) could include, but are in no way limited to:
Practical Details Proposals for papers, limited to 300 words, should be submitted in an anonymous file and include:
Please add a short bio-bibliographical note in a separate file. The conference languages are English and French.
Schedule - Proposals must be submitted on the Sciencesconf platform before 18/12/25. - Notification of acceptance: 16/02/26.
For any queries, please contact camille.ternisien@univ-lorraine.fr and/or adam.wilson@univ-lorraine.fr
Organising Committee Camille Ternisien (Université de Lorraine, IDEA) Adam Wilson (Université de Lorraine, IDEA) Catherine Chauvin (Université de Lorraine, IDEA) Marie Flesch (Université de Lorraine, ATILF) Isabelle Gaudy-Campbell (Université de Lorraine, IDEA) Lindsey Paek (Université de Lorraine, ATILF) Héloïse Parent (Université de Lorraine, IDEA)
Scientific Committee Maëlle Amand (Université de Limoges) Célia Atzeni (Université Sorbonne Nouvelle) Marc-Philippe Brunet (Université Savoie Mont Blanc) Catherine Chauvin (Université de Lorraine) Florent Chevalier (Nantes Université) Christophe Coupé-Jamet (CY Cergy Paris Université) Ian Cushing (Manchester Metropolitan University) Solenn Delannoye (Université Sorbonne Nouvelle) Sarah Feustle (Université Paris Nanterre) Marie Flesch (Université de Lorraine) Isabelle Gaudy-Campbell (Université de Lorraine) Laura Goudet (IUF, Université de Rouen Normandie) Olivier Glain (Université Jean Monnet Saint-Etienne) Katy Highet (University of the West of Scotland) Morana Lukač (University of Groningen) Philippe Millot (Université Lumière Lyon 2) Grégory Miras (Université de Lorraine) June Misset (Université de Strasbourg) Clara Molina Avila (Universidad Autónoma de Madrid) Lindsey Paek (Université de Lorraine) Héloïse Parent (Université de Lorraine) Kevin Petit (Université Clermont Auvergne) Linda Pillière (Aix-Marseille Université) Jean Paul Rocchi (Université Gustave Eiffel) Sandrine Sorlin (Université Paul Valéry Montpellier) Camille Ternisien (Université de Lorraine) Cécile Viollain (Université Paris Nanterre) Adam Wilson (Université de Lorraine) Séverine Wozniak (Université Lumière Lyon 2)
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