Grant Soedler and Jordan Durfee -- Popular Culture Association Conference
In April, RWU students and alumni had the opportunity to attend the Popular Culture Association’s National Conference in New Orleans. The Voices team had the pleasure of individually interviewing two of RWU’s participants. Please enjoy reading about Grant Soedler and Jordan Durfee’s respective experiences at PCA below.
First, we had the opportunity to interview Grant Soedler (he/him), a member of the class of 2025. Grant will be graduating this year with a major in Creative Writing as well as minors in History and Film Studies:
Q: Why did you choose to attend this conference?
A: I had been told about PCA both from English professors I had previously taken classes with and from friends of mine who had attended the conference in previous years.
Q: Who did you attend the conference with?
A: I attended the conference with Professor Laura D’Amore and fellow student seniors Matthew Milotakis and Ivy Hammet-Aron.
Q: Did you present any work? If so, what can you tell us about it?
A: Yes, I did present work! I presented a paper that I had written for my sophomore-year literary analysis class that I took with Dr. Meg Case, “The Deceptive Allure of Capitalism in Dreamworks’ Over the Hedge.” For our final project in this class, we were challenged to analyze a familiar work through an unfamiliar critical lens, and so I chose to look at one of my favorite childhood films through the lens of Marxist analysis. The premise of the paper, and the ultimate conclusion I came to, is that the film promotes the idea that adherence to capitalism ultimately causes those who believe in it to devalue their fellows in society and eventually end up isolated and alone, as demonstrated by the characters of RJ, Vincent, and Gladys within the film.
Q: Was this your first experience at a conference? If so, what are your impressions? If not, how does PCA compare to other conferences you’ve attended?
A: This was not my first experience at a conference, but it was the first that I had ever attended as part of a trip for school. I was very pleasantly surprised by it and really appreciated that the panels covered a wide variety of topics and were presented by scholars from all over the place. It was a very good trip to make connections!
Q: What was the most interesting segment of the conference?
A: My favorite panel I attended at the conference, and probably the most interesting one to me, was the Motherhood/Fatherhood in Popular Culture panel on The Wild Robot. Both presentations within the panel discussed the franchise The Wild Robot, which was recently adapted into an animated film by Dreamworks that released just last year. The first presentation discussed the idea of communal parenting and how it is presented within the original book, while the second presentation talked about the film adaptation and how it depicts the idea of postpartum depression in new mothers. I consider the Wild Robot film to be one of my favorite releases from last year, but I had never thought to approach it from either of these angles, and both topics led to a very interesting discussion following the presentation where I was probably the most engaged during the entire conference in contributing to and engaging with other scholars’ ideas.
Q: How did the English department help or encourage you to attend PCA?
A: As part of my original literary analysis class, we were encouraged by Dr. Case to submit our papers to PCA, and had several of her previous students give presentations about their previous experiences attending the conference. While I was not able to actually attend the conference until this year, this encouragement had stood out to me quite a bit. Additionally, while I was preparing to apply to and attend the conference, I received a bunch of much-appreciated help from Professor Jason Jacobs in revising and refining my original paper. I very likely would not have been as prepared as I was without him.
Q: Is there anything else you would like to add about your experience? This could be about anything – traveling, people, something that stands out to you the most about the trip?
A: I’m so glad I got the opportunity to attend! Even besides the wonderful experience at the conference, New Orleans was amazing to explore and see, and while I hadn’t known either Matthew or Ivy all that well before the trip, I felt that we were able to become quite close over the course of it, and it was truly a pleasure to get to know them both! I hope to attend PCA again in the future, whether that be as a RWU alumni or as a scholar in my own right!
The Voices team also interviewed Jordan Durfee (she/her), who graduated with the class of 2024. Jordan earned both an English Literary Studies and a Graphic Design major, as well as an American Sign Language minor:
Q: Did you present any work at the conference? If so, what can you tell us about it?
A: My paper was titled “The Dichotomy of Girls’ Anger in Avatar: The Last Airbender” and I focused on the characters of Katara and Azula as juxtaposing representations of girls’ anger, in which I highlighted the fact that Katara is the representation of good and healthy anger, while Azula is the representation of harmful and unhealthy anger. I am still overwhelmed with gratitude for the reception of the audience to my paper! The actual presentation went very well, but the questions after the fact were incredible, and I was so excited to get to share more of my thoughts not only on the topic of anger in ATLA, but other aspects of the show, and the questions gave me a lot to think about going forward. The other presenters in my group also had fascinating topics, and all in all I couldn’t have asked for a better experience!
Q: How does attending a conference as an alum compare to attending a conference as an undergraduate student?
A: At first, I didn’t think there was much of a difference, but as the conference went on, I found that some people respond differently to whether you are an undergraduate scholar or a graduate scholar. It’s unfortunate, but I felt as if I was taken more seriously this year compared to last year. Beyond that, the only difference – to me – was the traveling aspect, but otherwise I didn’t feel there was too much of a difference!
Q: What were some topics of discussion at the conference?
A: I attended panels in quite a few different areas, such as YA and Children’s Literature, Neurodivergent Studies, and Science Fiction and Fantasy, among many, many more! A lot of the presentations I saw focused on various types of representation across different media, whether that representation be for race, queerness, neurodivergence, or something else entirely. I found that most people presenting just wished to share their love for the media they are talking about through their analysis and critique of said media, which was really cool to see! I personally gravitate more towards the panels that talk about different fantasy media, but I did attend one panel about Psychology in Television where both Bluey and Ted Lasso were discussed, which was pretty fascinating. There was something for everyone at PCA!
Q: What was your favorite event at the conference?
A: Wow, there’s just so much to choose from! There was one panel I attended about the demystification of paper publication where I got highly specialized advice and two new mentors in the process! I came out of that panel with a renewed sense of confidence about my scholarly journey going forward. The book room – where you could meet with different publishing companies and buy some incredible books in the process – is always great. But really, I just loved all the panels and presentations. I think some of my favorites were the Undergraduate presentations I saw, particularly a panel titled “Princesses, Witches, and Witchcraft,” or I would say the Sci-Fi and Fantasy panel titled “Seeking Truth in Heroes, Villains, and Authority.”
Q: Have connections with the university helped you at all in terms of attending conferences and other events?
A: I think that Roger helped prepare me for conferences, and how to apply to and navigate them. Going to PCA last year as an undergrad provided invaluable lessons about the behind-the-scenes of conference preparation, but also my own capabilities in academia. The foundation Roger laid for me is one I will be forever grateful for.
Q: Is there anything else you would like to add about your experience? This could be about anything – traveling, people, something that stands out to you the most about the trip?
A: Everything about this trip was beyond brilliant. Meeting so many different academics and scholars, getting to watch so many incredible presentations, and all with New Orleans to provide such a brilliant backdrop? I truly couldn’t have asked for a better experience! For anyone debating applying for conferences in the future – especially PCA – I would say stop debating and go for it! There’s no way to regret such a great experience.
We are so proud of Grant and Jordan for presenting at PCA! We hope you enjoyed learning more about their trip.
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