Registration Open: “Play in the Long Nineteenth Century”

Registration is now open for the Romance, Revolution and Reform journal’s annual conference. This year’s theme is Play in the Long Nineteenth Century, and it will take place at the University of Kent on Friday, 17^th January 2025. 

You can view the provisional programme here. 

Though the long nineteenth century may not immediately conjure images of playfulness in the popular imagination, scholars recognise it as a period that revolutionised play. Games were ubiquitous, hundreds of dedicated recreational spaces — museums, playgrounds, parks —were established, and a new cult of leisure took root, reshaping both public and private life. Play was also central to Victorian and Edwardian ideals of childhood, laying the groundwork for modern conceptions of child development. The fluidity of play as a concept reflects its inherent contradictions and multiplicity of meanings. It can be structured or spontaneous, subversive or conformist, innate or transformative. Whether seen as a period marking the end or a reimagining of play, play can offer a way of looking at broader cultural and societal dynamics of the time and how we think about play today.

Please sign up via the Eventbrite page and follow the instructions to complete registration. 

We hope that can join us!