Aims and Objectives

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Aims and Objectives

Beginning in the seventeenth Century, Glasgow has been a gateway for economic, social and cultural exchange between Scotland and North America. These connections formed the foundation of American Studies at the University of Glasgow, which has lon been at the forefront of the study of American society and culture. Beginning with Professor John Nichol's groundbreaking American Literature, An Historical Sketch, 1620-1880 (1882), the first major work of such distinguished students and staff as D.W. Brogan, Esmond Wright , Peter Parish, William Brock and Andrew Hook. Building upon this distinguished record, the Anderw Hook Centre for American Studies was established in 1997 to foster a community of staff and postgraduate students from different fields and departments who share an interest in American society and culture. The Centre promotes American studies by sponsoring seminars, colloquia, conferences, films and theatrical events, and by offering the taught M.Phil. in American Studies. In recent years the Centre has featured seminars and public lectures by British and American scholars and such major figures as Toni Morrison and Ken Burns, and the Centre has hosted the annual conferences of the British Association for American Studies, the Omohundro Institute of Early American HIstory and Culture, and the Scottish Association for the Study of America, as well as organising 'retreats' for postgraduate students and scholars.