Two Fresno State students will travel to the national society for the Study of Multi-ethnic Literature of the United States (MELUS) conference, generally a place where professors and Ph.D candidates present their work, in April to discuss the papers they wrote.

English Master’s student Kristen Johnson, 24, and English major Erin Alvarez, 35, both submitted abstracts, a 250-word description of what the paper is about, to MELUS and both were chosen to speak at the 24th annual conference.

According to the MELUS Web site, the 1973-founded society ventures to create an in-depth definition of literature through the studying and teaching of Latino American, Native American, African-American, Asian and Pacific American, and Euro-American literary works, as well as their authors and cultural contexts.

This year’s theme for the conference concentrates on multi-ethnic literatures of the United States. The society would like to hear from those who will focus their presentations on the literature of the city and theories of the urban experience in a multi-ethnic context.

The conference will take place at the University of Scranton in Scranton, Pa on April 8 through April 11.

Photos By Joy Hallare / The Collegian

Kristen Johnson

For Johnson, speaking at a national conference is a brand new experience and she’s not sure what to expect.

“This is the first time I have done something like this on a national level,” Johnson said. “I presented a paper called ‘The Truth Beneath the Disguise’ for Fresno State’s Graduate Research and Creative Arts Symposium in Spring 2009.”

Johnson will present her paper titled “The Many Spaces that Influence Identity,” a piece she wrote two years ago in her Seminar in Women and Literature (ENGL 194T) class.

Johnson said her paper is about how Azar Nafisi, Iranian author of ‘Reading Lolita in Tehran’ can only gain access to public space in Tehran by going through her mentor, the magician, since women aren’t allowed to discuss their opinions on politics and literature.

At the conference, Johnson looks forward to meeting interesting people and presenting her work at a national level. Johnson has researched and prepared for the questions the professors and Ph.D candidates will ask during her panel.

“[Speaking] is nerve wracking since I am a nervous public speaker,” Johnson said. “I suspect I will be practicing as much as I can to be ready for this conference.”

Johnson said that she feels more pressure because she is one of the few speakers who hasn’t received her doctorate.

Students of the English Studies Association (SESA) are paying up to $750 for Johnson’s hotel and transportation. She plans to cover the rest of the fees.

“I plan to try to my best at this conference since that is all I can do,” Johnson said.

Photos By Joy Hallare / The Collegian

Erin Alvarez

When Alvarez discovered the theme for the conference was about what immigrants bring to the cities they live in, she realized that was exactly what she was writing about.

“I want to look at Chicana stories but they’re hard to find. I [found] a lot of male Chicano stories but nothing from a Chicana viewpoint,” Alvarez said. “So I thought about contributing to the Chicana literary cannon.”

In her paper, Alvarez analyzes Chicana identity with Chicana literature, focusing on Central Valley writers Luis Valdez and Gary Soto.

Alvarez said that there’s a lot of Chicana literature that comes from Chicago and Los Angeles but there’s very few from Fresno.

“[Luis Valdez and Gary Soto] are male writers and they’re projecting my identity, they’re creating my identity,” Alvarez said. “I want to look and see how we can change that.”

Alvarez explains how a friend’s 12-year-old daughter, who reads Gary Soto’s book in her school, was the one who really made her wonder about the scarce amount of Chicana authors and stories in Fresno.

“I asked her ‘do you see yourself in his work’ and she said that she doesn’t identify with any of the characters,” Alvarez said.

The majority of the stories he writes are memoirs about growing up in Fresno as a boy, so there’s no room for a Chicana identity, Alvarez said.

Alvarez also said that while McNair, a post-baccalaureate achievement program intended to support low-income first generation college students, will pay a travel stipend, she will be paying for this trip on her own.