CFP: 80 Years On: Memory and Legacy of World War II in the ESEA Popular Culture
80 Years On: Memory and Legacy of World War II in the ESEA Popular Culture
Tuesday, 2 September 2025
School of Arts, Media and Communication
University of Leicester
The year 2025 marks the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II. This global conflict has shaped the modern world and continues influencing international relations, cultural production and historical discourse. In Europe, V-E Day (8 May 1945) is often commemorated as the end of the war, and yet in the Asia-Pacific region, the war continued relentlessly until Japan's unconditional surrender on 15 August 1945, following the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. It was on 2 September 1945, when Japan signed the formal surrender document, that World War II officially ended.
The 80th anniversary offers a unique opportunity to examine how World War II is remembered and reimagined in popular culture across East and Southeast Asia (ESEA), and of equal importance, how these representations have been transmitted and circulated across the globe. From blockbuster films to literary works, television dramas to manga, video games to digital media, the portrayal of World War II in popular culture serves as a lens through which memory, identity and historical legacy are constructed and negotiated. The transmission across different cultural contexts also raises pertinent questions about the meaning and problematics of translating war memory.
Submission Details:
This hybrid one-day symposium invites scholars and researchers from diverse disciplines, including but not limited to history, cultural studies, film studies, literary studies and translation studies, to submit abstracts addressing these themes. Comparative and interdisciplinary approaches are especially encouraged.
Topics may include but are not limited to:
- In what ways do films, literary texts and other cultural forms and genres engage with the memory and legacy of the war?
- How do these cultural forms reflect or challenge dominant historical narratives?
- What role does popular culture play in shaping public perceptions of wartime trauma, heroism and reconciliation over the past decades?
- How are transnational perspectives on World War II represented in ESEA popular culture, particularly in relation to Western narratives?
- What are the issues and implications of translating war memory in ESEA popular culture?
Abstract Requirements:
- Abstract length: approx. 300 words for a 15-20 minute presentation.
- A short bio: approx. 150 words. Please include title, author's name, institutional affiliation and contact information.
Key Dates:
- Deadline for abstract submission: 30 May 2025
- Notification of acceptance: 30 June 2025
- Symposium date: 2 September 2025
Publication plans:
The organisation team is planning to submit an edited book proposal following the symposium. Thus, we particularly welcome submissions of original work that has not already been published. We also welcome proposals of work-in-progress papers. At the end of the symposium, there will be an optional publication planning workshop.
Submission and Inquiries:
Please send abstracts and your biography information (in a single Word document) and any inquiries to ESEAculture@leicester.ac.uk
Further information
Registration fee (daily rate): £50 for waged and £40 for unwaged attendees.
The University of Leicester is hosting the 2025 British Association for Chinese Studies (BACS) annual conference on 3-5 September. Registered BACS conference attendees will receive a £10 discount on the registration fee for this symposium.