The Robert H. Elias Essay Prize
The Robert H. Elias Essay Prize, named after a pioneering Dreiser scholar, is sponsored by the International Theodore Dreiser Society and is awarded annually to the graduate student or untenured faculty member who submits the best previously unpublished essay on the topic of naturalism or on the work of a naturalist author. Elias, formerly a professor at Cornell University, knew Dreiser and wrote the first official biography, Theodore Dreiser, Apostle of Nature (1949), and his groundbreaking three-volume edition of Dreiser's letters (1959) was the standard collection of the novelist's general correspondence for fifty years. The Elias Essay Prize originated in 2000 as the Dreiser Essay Prize, and in 2009 the prize was retitled, with expanded scope, in honor of Robert H. Elias after his death in 2008.
Applicants may submit essays that consider any aspect of naturalism, broadly conceived. We are especially interested in essays that push the boundaries of conventional conceptions of naturalism and those that make a case for extending traditional interpretations to later writers or that establish connections to other literary movements. In addition to a cash award of $250, the winning essay will appear in Studies in American Naturalism, a peer-reviewed journal sponsored by the Society. Other worthy essays besides the winner will be considered for publication as well.
Electronic submissions are encouraged, either as Word or PDF files. Please identify yourself on a cover page and not on the manuscript itself, and include a postal mailing address and telephone number.
Manuscripts should be sent to:
Deadline:
Previous recipients:
Applicants may submit essays that consider any aspect of naturalism, broadly conceived. We are especially interested in essays that push the boundaries of conventional conceptions of naturalism and those that make a case for extending traditional interpretations to later writers or that establish connections to other literary movements. In addition to a cash award of $250, the winning essay will appear in Studies in American Naturalism, a peer-reviewed journal sponsored by the Society. Other worthy essays besides the winner will be considered for publication as well.
Electronic submissions are encouraged, either as Word or PDF files. Please identify yourself on a cover page and not on the manuscript itself, and include a postal mailing address and telephone number.
Manuscripts should be sent to:
- Donna Packer-Kinlaw, Studies in American Naturalism, dreisersociety@gmail.com or dpackerkinlaw@aacc.edu
Deadline:
- Submissions must be received by July 15
Previous recipients:
- 2018-- J. Bret Maney, "'A Bit of Ashes in Their Hands': The Dysphoria of Success in Sister Carrie," Studies in American Naturalism 13.1 (2018).
- 2016-17-- Hannah Huber, "Illuminating Sleeplessness in Edith Wharton’s The House of Mirth," Studies in American Naturalism 11:2 (2016).
- 2015-- Dustin Faulstick, “’The Preacher Thought as I Think’”: Wolf Larsen, Humphrey Van Weyden, and Jack London’s Ecclesiastes,” Studies in American Naturalism 10:1 (2015).
- 2014-- Anne Diebel, “That indescribable thing”: Personality in Dreiser’s Early Journalism and Sister Carrie," Studies in American Naturalism 9:2 (2014-15).
- 2013-- James A. Puckett, "'Sex explains it all': Male Performance, Evolution, and Sexual Selection in Ernest Hemingway’s The Sun Also Rises" Studies in American Naturalism 8.2 (2013-14).
- 2012-- Yair Solan, “‘Striking Stereopticon Views’: Edith Wharton’s ‘Bunner Sisters’ and Nineteenth-Century Magic Lantern Entertainment. Studies in American Naturalism 7.2 (2012-13).
- 2004-- David Zimmerman, "The Financier and the Ends of Accounting." Dreiser Studies 35.2 (2004): 3-28.
- 2003-- Olga Volkova, "A Socialist Realist Perspective on Sister Carrie." Dreiser Studies 34.2 (2003): 3-23.
- 2003-- Hildegarde Hoeller, "Herland and Hisland: Illness and 'Health' in the Writings of Charlotte Perkins Gilman and Theodore Dreiser." Dreiser Studies 34.2 (2003): 24-43.
- 2002-- Jeff Jaeckle, "Dreiser's Universe of Imbalance in Sister Carrie." Dreiser Studies 33.2 (2002): 3-20.
- 2001-- Donna Packer-Kinlaw, "Life on the Margins: The Silent Feminist in Theodore Dreiser's 'Marriage--for One." Dreiser Studies 32.2 (2001): 3-18.
- 2000-- Nancy M. Donovan, "Representing Grace Brown: The Working-Class Woman in 'American Tragedy'" Narratives." Dreiser Studies 31.2 (2000): 3-21.