Robert Burns and Global Culture

A total of four workshop meetings are proposed: one in Manchester, one in Edinburgh, one in Prague, and a fourth in Glasgow. In addition, there will be a prepatory meeting to set the agenda for these four research meetings. Each of the workshop meetings will examine different aspects of the objectives of the research listed under Objectives. The Manchester meeting (April 2008) will focus on the critical reception history of Burns in the Anglophone world (Objectives 2 and 3): the main speakers will be Professor Nigel Leask, Professor Murray Pittock and Dr Gerry Carruthers (see Steering Committee under Case for Support). The planned Glasgow workshop (October 2008) will address Objective 4, with a view to the feasibility of creating a database of the performance of Burns in culture in both historic and contemporary terms: main speakers will be Professor R.D.S. Jack, Dr Valentina Bold and Dr Gerry Carruthers. The Edinburgh event (January 2009), which will precede the Robert Burns and Global Culture day at the Royal Society of Edinburgh, will review progress and discuss publication plans. Main speakers will include Professor Leith Davis and Professor Martin Procházka. The workshop in Prague (March 2009) will address the question of Burns' creative and critical reception in Europe, and his influences on images of Scotland there with a view to identifying areas for further research (Objectives 2, 3, 4.1, 4.2 with respect to Europe only): the main speakers will be (possibly) Professor Mánek and one or two others- possibly Professor Mergenthal).