Call for Articles

UNIVERSITY OF BUCHAREST REVIEW.
LITERARY AND CULTURAL STUDIES SERIES 2026

University of Bucharest Review. Literary and Cultural Studies Series invites articles on the following two themes below, from a variety of interpretative approaches. The deadline for submissions is September 30, 2026.

Issue 1/2026: “Representations of crime in literature and the arts”

Issue 2/2026 (special issue): “From the volcanic to the narrative arc: spectacles of volcanoes in humanities and geosciences”

We welcome interdisciplinary approaches, which explore all possible intersections of literary and cultural studies with the other disciplines in (and even beyond) the humanities.

Issue 1/2026: “Representations of crime in literature and the arts”

The solving of crimes, mysteries and enigmas is as old as mankind itself. The Old Testament is replete with punishments for misconduct and immoral behaviour. Sophocles’ Oedipus the King provides an early example of the discovery of a hidden past; Seneca’s revenge tragedies paved the way for the gore of much current cinema. Likewise, artists have often depicted gruesome murders, Bellini and Gentileschi being outstanding examples. Crime can cover a wide variety of deviant acts, ranging from robbery, tax evasion and slander to mass murders and even genocide. These crimes have been represented in diverse and graphic ways in literature, art, and media more broadly.

Murder, sex, and money are intricately linked in what has generically been called crime fiction, with its diverse characters ranging across class, age, gender identity, and ethnicity. In his article “The Typology of Detective Fiction,” Tzvetan Todorov claims that crime fiction in many of its various sub-forms has a special relationship with the past. The central event, usually the murder, takes places in pre-narrated time, and the actual investigation is almost a kind of narrative archaeology in which a mysterious past event is excavated through its reconstruction in the present. The central characters of crime in literature, art, film, or television can be grouped into victims, perpetrators, innocent bystanders, witnesses, and suspicious characters, who frequently appear to be haunted by their memories and past traumas. This harking back to the past is reminiscent of Svetlana Boym’s concept of restorative nostalgia, which is associated with social and political conservatism. On the other hand, there is a strong tradition of radical fiction that looks to the past not for comfort and stability, but in order to challenge historical myths and collective memories of unity, order, and security. With its emphasis on the surprising and the mysterious, on secretive landscapes and characters, and often on the excessive fascination with violence, deviance, and all forms of transgression, the Gothic novel was crucial for the emergence of crime fiction, and their identifying features overlap to a certain extent. “Crime can be presented as ‘Gothic’ through the themes of the returning past, the psychologically unstable protagonist, the celebration of excess, and the emphasis on surfaces” (Spooner, 2020: 257). Modes like the Gothic and the Weird have often been employed in order to frame and define crime and the actors involved, whether they are victims, perpetrators, accomplices, or bystanders.

Recognizing that crime is an umbrella term that incorporates various sub-forms, many of which have just recently appeared, this conference is dedicated to exploring the manner in which criminal acts have been represented across a wide variety of media and genres, and the various narrative strategies and generic features that have been employed in order to address local, national, cultural, and global phenomena.

We invite articles that analyse and explore representations of crime in narratives and discourses, in poetry, drama and dance, in music, film and television, in graphic novels, comics and video games, in painting, sculpture and installations, in mainstream and social media, or in any other relevant cultural form. We encourage comparative and interdisciplinary approaches, but we recommend that their starting point should be Anglophone literature and culture.

Possible topics may include (but are not limited to) the following:

Special issue (2/2026): “From the volcanic to the narrative arc: spectacles of volcanoes in humanities and geosciences”

Guest Editors

Dr. Nikoleta Zampaki, Postdoctoral Researcher, Faculty of Philology, School of Philosophy, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Greece

Dr. Paula Wieczorek, Assistant Professor, Department of English Studies, University of Information Technology and Management, Poland

Dr. Paraskevi Nomikou, Professor of  Geological Oceanography and Natural Geography, Department of Geology & Geoenvironment, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Greece

Dr. Andreas Markantonatos, Professor of Ancient Greek Literature, Faculty of Philology, University of the Peloponnese, Greece

Volcanoes are primal spectacles of the environment that simultaneously embody creative and destructive forces. They shape landscapes, forge islands, enrich soils, and precipitate climatic shifts, while also unleashing cataclysm, burying civilisations, and inspiring profound existential awe. This duality positions the volcano as a uniquely potent object of study, one that transcends disciplinary boundaries. It is a geophysical entity governed by the laws of the Earth’s interior and a cultural symbol erupting into human consciousness through myth, narrative, image, and memory (Sigurdsson, 1999).

This special issue, From the volcanic to the narrative arc, seeks to explore the multifaceted spectacle of volcanoes by forging a robust dialogue between the Humanities and Geosciences. We aim to move beyond a simple dichotomy of “scientific fact” versus “cultural representation” and instead investigate the fertile intersections where these modes of knowing coexist, conflict, and co-create meaning. We invite contributions that examine how the material reality of volcanism is translated into storytelling diachronically, educational tools, heritage sites, and spatial imaginaries, and conversely, how human narratives and interventions shape our scientific understanding and environmental engagement with volcanic spaces (e.g., Stewart & Nield, 2013; Yusoff, 2013).

We are particularly interested in abstracts that engage with the following interdisciplinary axes:

Axis 1: Classics, literature, and myth (the archaic spectacle)

• Volcanoes in classical mythology and literature (e.g., Vulcan/Hephaestus, the Phlegraean Fields, Vesuvius in Pliny).
• The volcano as a locus of the sublime in Romantic and modern literature.
• Literary representations of historical eruptions as narrative events.
• The volcano as metaphor in poetry and prose: passion, social upheaval, creativity, trauma.

Axis 2: Cultural, media, and visual studies (the mediated spectacle)

• The iconography of volcanoes in painting, photography, and film.
• Cinematic eruptions: disaster genres, documentary aesthetics, and special effects.
• News media framing of volcanic crises and risk communication.
• Digital and social media representations of volcanoes (e.g., viral eruption footage, influencer tourism).
• The volcano in video games and other interactive digital media.
• How do narrative forms (myth, novel, film, game) structure our temporal and emotional experience of geological deep time and sudden eruption?

Axis 3: Geo-spatial humanities and digital approaches (the mapped spectacle)

• Historical cartography of volcanic regions and the evolution of spatial understanding.
• GIS applications to study the interplay between volcanic landscapes and human settlement patterns, cultural pathways, or literary geographies.
• Digital humanities projects that model, archive, or interpret volcanic events and their cultural footprints.
• The use of VR/AR to recreate historical eruptions or visualize geological processes for scholarly and public engagement.

Axis 4: Geoheritage, geoparks, and education (the pedagogical spectacle)

• The role of UNESCO Global Geoparks in framing volcanic heritage for sustainable development.
• Narratives of risk and resilience in community engagement at volcanic sites.
• Comparative studies of interpretation and storytelling at different volcanic geoheritage sites (e.g., Pompeii, Hawai‘i, Iceland, Santorini, Nisyros).
• Educational methodologies for teaching volcanism interdisciplinarily.
• The ethics and politics of “dark tourism” at sites of volcanic disaster.

Axis 5: Geoscience and its narratives (the scientific spectacle)

• Critical analysis of the narratives and metaphors used within geoscience itself (e.g., “plumbing systems,” “eruptive behaviour,” “sleeping giants”).
• Historical case studies of how scientific knowledge of a specific volcano was constructed and communicated.
• The role of artistic and visual collaboration in geoscientific practice and data visualization.
• Interdisciplinary fieldwork: what happens when poets, artists, or philosophers accompany volcanologists?
• In what ways do geoparks and museums curate the “spectacle” of volcanism, balancing education, conservation, and tourism?
• How can interdisciplinary collaborations produce new forms of public understanding and environmental stewardship?
• How does the material agency of volcanic matter (ash, lava, pumice) constrain or inspire cultural production?
• What are the different “spectacles” witnessed by a sensor, a satellite, a survivor, a poet, and a geologist?

The volcanic arc and the narrative arc are profoundly connected through a shared logic of transformation. A volcanic arc is a geological process of accumulation and eruption: pressure builds from subterranean forces, reaches a critical threshold, and culminates in a spectacular, landscape-altering release. Similarly, the narrative arc is a structure of tension and catharsis: conflict gathers, rises toward a climax, and resolves, leaving the characters and the reader’s understanding irrevocably changed. This parallel makes the volcano not just a setting but an active narrative engine. Its physical stages—quiescence, unrest, paroxysm, aftermath—mirror plot dynamics of calm, rising action, climax, and denouement. Furthermore, the volcano’s material outcomes—destruction, creation of new land, atmospheric effects—provide potent metaphors for thematic exploration: trauma and resilience, societal upheaval, the sublime interplay of beauty and terror. Thus, to study the “volcanic arc” in the geosciences is to analyze a planetary mechanism; to study it in the humanities is to decode a foundational story pattern. The connection lies in their mutual revelation of how latent power, through a necessary rupture, forges a new reality—whether of rock or of meaning.

This special issue aims to be a foundational text for the growing field of Critical Volcano Studies (CVS), providing a comprehensive and innovative roadmap for scholars, educators, and practitioners interested in the profound entanglement of fire, earth, story, and image.

UBR makes it possible for all its hosted articles to be included in such international databases as SCOPUS, ERIH PLUS, EBSCO, DOAJ and CEEOL.

If you are interested in having your article considered for publication, please send contributions in electronic form by September 30, 2026 at the latest.  You will receive a confirmation message.

Articles are invited in: British, Irish and Commonwealth Literatures, American Literature, World and Comparative Literature, Cultural Studies, Intellectual and Cultural History, Art History and Visual Culture, Literary Theory, Translation Studies.

All articles must be written in MLA Style English. Please consult our Instructions for authors section before submitting your material at UBRpublication@gmail.com

We also welcome book reviews of recently published titles (not earlier than three years before the issue that hosts the review). Such contributions will feature in a designated section of our journal.

The Editorial Board

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