Call for papers: "Economics and the Novel"

For a special issue of the International Journal of Pluralism and Economics Education.

Novels often illuminate broad socio-economic issues. Think of The Grapes of Wrath, Hard Times, A Tale of Two Cities, The Great Gatsby, The Jungle, etc. Given that economics is about provisioning and that fiction often depicts economic conditions and socio-economic issues, we feel that the intersection of fiction and economics should be more expansive. We find it encouraging that economists from a variety of perspectives are beginning to look at novels to inform both their thinking and pedagogy.

 

This special issue papers on all aspects of the intersection between the novel and economics. Is there common ground? Are there significant obstacles precluding a dialogue? In addition to the western classics mentioned above, what works of fiction from the developing world are of interest? How can our students benefit from reading novels? How can economists benefit from novels? And how can novelists benefit from a knowledge of pluralist economics?

 

Suitable topics include, but are not limited to, the following:

• What is the common ground between novels and economics? What are the obstacles to a fruitful dialogue?
• Literary fiction as economic models and economic models as literary fiction: similarities and differences
• Using the novel to better understand economic conditions and broad socioeconomic trends
• How can the novel help promote pluralism?
• How can fiction help revitalise and reconceptualise economics?
• Can knowledge of pluralist economics make for better fiction?
• Economic insights from novels: what novels can tell us that models cannot
• Economic analysis of specific novels
• Economic analysis of specific novelists
• How specific novels and novelists can help us understand a specific time, place and economic issue
• Economic analysis of literary genre
• Economic analysis of novels of historical specific time frames
• Economic analysis of contemporary novels: western world
• Economic analysis of novels: developing world
• Use of literary fiction in classroom in economic pedagogy: field reports and data
• Use of literary fiction in interdisciplinary classes with economic content: field reports and data

 

Important Dates

Submission of manuscripts: 30 June, 2015

Referee reports to authors: 1 August, 2015

Final versions due: 15 November, 2015