Literary buffs were treated to a series of readings and panels this weekend, as dozens of writers migrated to Brown's campus to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the well-known literary magazine, Conjunctions.
The series featured readings from John Ashbery, John Barth, Joyce Carol Oates and Rick Moody '83, among many other established writers. Nearly every writer had published in Conjunctions or served as a contributing editor to the publication.
The event, dubbed "Unspeakable Practices IV," began Thursday with a series of poetry readings in the Salomon Center and continued into the weekend with several fiction readings and roundtable discussions. The festival culminated on Saturday evening with "The Unspeakable Circus," during which 30 writers read various poems and short fiction pieces in rapid succession.
The festival takes its name from fiction writer Donald Barthelme's novel "Unspeakable Practices, Unnatural Acts." The first festival occurred in 1988 as a tribute to then-retiring Professor of English John Hawkes, according to Adjunct Professor of Literary Arts and "Unspeakable Practices" founder Robert Coover. The success of the first festival prompted similar ones in 1993 and 1996.
Coover said many of the writers from the original festival have returned over the years.
"It's a real honor for Brown to be celebrating the 25th anniversary of Conjunctions this way," said Bradford Morrow, the publication's editor and founder. "I am very fond of and have been very influenced by writers associated with Brown."
Considered one of the country's leading literary magazines, Conjunctions is a biannual collection of experimental poetry, fiction, drama and art. According to Morrow, it was originally intended to be a single volume tribute to New Directions publisher James Laughlin, but its popularity spawned additional issues of the magazine.
Though the magazine is published by Bard College, Morrow told The Herald that Brown was a natural place to celebrate its anniversary. The John Hay Library houses a complete Conjunctions archive, and Morrow himself has participated in multiple literary panels held on campus.
"There's been a longstanding relationship between myself and the University," Morrow said. "It made perfect sense that our 25th anniversary be at Brown."
Many authors chose to read works that will appear in Conjunctions' upcoming issue, its 47th. Moody read a humor piece titled "Story With Advice*" on Friday afternoon, and John Barth read from his short story "Us/Them" later that night.
"I'm the only postmodernist who still wears a tie," Barth joked as he stepped up to the podium, keeping the event's mood playful.
Other authors read works not yet published in the magazine. Oates chose to read excerpts from her new novella based on Ernest Hemmingway's life, while Professor of Africana Studies John Edgar Wideman selected a series of recently composed short stories.
The festival concluded in Salomon on Saturday night with published authors reading alongside Brown graduate and undergraduate students. "The Unspeakable Circus" was moderated by Matthew Derby MFA '99, who kept readers to their five-minute time allotment with the help of a shrill whistle.
Between original works of fiction and poetry, "The Unspeakable Circus" was home to several unusual events. For example, at one point, organizers threw boxes of candy into the audience as circus music blared over the sound system.
The three-hour event embodied the festival's mission of bringing vanguard writing to Brown and ended Conjunctions' anniversary celebration on a decidedly experimental note.
