Dear blog,

I’m pleased to report that the ‘Thomas de Quincey, Manchester, and Medicine, 1785-1959’ was a great success. It was humbling inspiring to hear about the trials and tribulations of de Quincey’s editors, many of whom were present at the conference, as well as great to meet the new biographer of de Quincey, Robert Morrison, whose book is out now: http://www.orionbooks.co.uk/HB-41019/The-English-Opium-Eater.htm. I am looking forward to reading this at Christmas. There were many excellent papers read during the day, and I was particularly pleased to hear more about the Mancheser surgeon Charles White from Peter Kitson. On our guided walk after the conference we saw where White’s house and museum would have been; a museum that Kitson suggested could have been intended as a rival to John Hunter’s museum in London and which Thomas de Quincey visited trying to get a glimpse of Hannah Beswick’s mummified body.

This week I’ve met with others in my school who are interested in the University’s theme of ‘Energy’ and it was fascinating to learn of the projects going on in many disciplines, from art and design to politics, that might come under this heading. One of our strengths at Salford in English is an interest in the environment, whether this is ecocriticism or ecopoetry. I’m nearly at the end of my first semester teaching a module called ‘Green Writing’ to students and I think the module has gone well. Next week is the final session, and we’re going to be looking at an anthology called Feeling the Pressure: Poetry and Science of Climate Change, edited by Paul Munden and published by the British Council. You can download the whole book here: http://www.britishcouncil.org/switzerland-climate-change-anthology.htm. It’s interesting to be looking at this material when climate change is so much in the news at the moment.

All best,

Sharon