The purpose of the conference
Cats form a nearly ever-present aspect of our daily lives online and offline. The purpose of this two-day interdisciplinary conference is to investigate cats in society, history, social media, literature, film, TV series, language, and every-day lives. We invite scholars to analyse what cats signify to us, how they are represented in various discourses, how we talk about and with our cats, and how cats can contribute to health and wellbeing. The language of the conference is English.
Topics of relevance are (but not limited to):
- Fictional cats
- Cat-human interaction and cat behaviour
- Treatment of cats in different cultures and eras
- Cats on the internet and in popular culture: social media accounts; memes; videos; lolspeak; films; TV series
- Cats in cinema and literature
- Discourse on cat hoarders, rescuers, and fosterers
- Communication and narratives with and about cats
- Cat cafés and other settings where cats are not usually encountered (stores, libraries, etc.)
- Personification and humanisation of cats
- Cats as family members: naming practices, mourning
- Famous cats: past & present
- Discourse on cats: obituaries, adoption ads, lost posters, cat charities, cards from ‘cats’
- Cats in the media, advertising, and branding
- Gender and cats (cat ladies and cat daddies)
- Idioms on cats
Sub-disciplines
The following sub-disciplines are relevant: (Popular) Cultural Studies, Comparative Literature, Literary Studies, Archaeology, Media Studies, Anthropology, Ethnography, Sociology, History, Linguistics, Animal Behavioural Science, Gender Studies, Psychology, Veterinary Science, Narratology, Museum and Archive Studies. Interdisciplinary studies are particularly welcome.
Time and venue
15-16 May 2025 (lunch-lunch), at Uppsala University, in the hometown of the fictional cat Pelle Svanslös.
Attend the conference
Applications to the conference are made by submitting an abstract via email to one of the organizers, no later than February 3, 2025. Abstracts should be 300 words in length, excluding references.
Notification of acceptance will be sent by February 10, 2025. Registration information will be provided by February 15, 2025. We aim to publish a selection of the papers in an edited volume or special issue after the conference.
The conference fee is 300 SEK.
Speakers
Susanne Schötz, Associate Professor of Phonetics, Department of Clinical Sciences, Lund
Cat talk: Phonetic studies of cat communication
Many people say that they understand exactly what their cats are saying. Cats and humans have lived close to one another for about 10,000 years, and have learned to communicate using visual, tactile as well as vocal signals. What are the phonetic properties of the different types of cat vocalisations, and how can we use phonetic methods to learn more about cat–human communication? In this talk I will give an overview of previous research in this field, and also present results from more recent studies.
Bodil Ström Holst, Associate Professor, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Uppsala
For better or worse – the cats and its owner in health and disease
Cats have strong personalities, and the relationship between cats and their owners is often special and strong. The present presentation elaborates on this relationship, and how it is described by the owners. The lifespan of a cat is long, and with increasing age many develop cats develop chronic diseases. Caring for a cat with a disease is a special challenge, and in this presentation results on how a chronic disease affects the cats and their owners.
