IWL 2024: A report by Marit van de Warenburg

This year’s edition of the Harvard-based Institute of World Literature program took place at the University of Cyprus from July 18th to August 1st. OSL PhD candidate Marit van de Warenburg (Utrecht University) took part in the program — please find Marit’s report below!

 

This summer, I had the opportunity to participate in the Institute of World Literature (IWL) summer school as an OSL delegate. Each year, the IWL offers a platform for PhD candidates and advanced graduate students from around the world to discuss various aspects of world literature. Organized by David Damrosch and Delia Ungureanu, who have been helming the program since 2010, this year’s summer school was held at the University of Cyprus in Nicosia—a city divided by a Green Line, which separates the Turkish Cypriot North from the Greek Cypriot South. Over the course of four weeks, around 100 participants, including myself, attended seminars with internationally renowned scholars, participated in lectures by prominent academics and authors, and presented our research in one of nine colloquia. Each participant took part in two two-week seminars, which covered a wide range of topics—such as exile writing, hyperreality, magazines in world literature, translation, and the international publishing industry.

In the first half of the program, I joined Professor Karen van Dyck’s seminar, which focused on multilingualism, diasporic writing, and translation practices. During the second half, I participated in Professor Gisèle Sapiro’s seminar, where we discussed how literature can (or cannot) cross borders. Both seminars, with around 15 students each, sparked rich discussions on these complex topics, and the professors guided us through a variety of texts and ideas. I appreciated the opportunity to dive into these subjects, learn from these experts in the field, and gain fresh perspectives from my peers, who each brought their own expertise, research interests and cultural baggage. The seminars also provided a helpful space to develop my own research: emulating the dynamics of a ‘real’ university campus, professors were available for further discussion during office hours. I boarded my plane back to the Netherlands with fresh perspectives on my work and a renewed enthusiasm to delve into my case studies.

Beyond the academic benefits, the summer school also provided a unique opportunity to meet new people, and to explore Cyprus. I made some good friends. We are still in touch, and have promised to meet again whenever conferences or other events bring us to each other’s parts of the world. Overall, I’m very grateful for the experience and would recommend it to any OSL member who is interested in world literature, connecting with people from across the globe, and spending four weeks immersed in academic discussions. It’s an experience I’m glad I didn’t miss.