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Sunday 5 July 2015

2015 James Hogg Society Conference: Some Reflections

Some participants at the James Hogg Society conference, April 2015
Steps of Victoria College at the University of Toronto

The 2015 James Hogg Society Conference was held in Toronto, Canada on 9-12 April 2015.  The conference, which was coordinated by Dr. Hans de Groot together with Programme Directors Dr. Sharon Alker and Dr. Holly Faith Nelson, was co-sponsored by Victoria College, University of Toronto, and the Department of English, University of Toronto.  More than thirty delegates from across the globe gathered to listen to and discuss a full programme of stimulating and enjoyable papers about Hogg and his world, as well as to meet friends and colleagues, old and new.  

It was a particular pleasure that the conference members included both Bruce Gilkison, a direct descendant of James Hogg, and Jamie Laidlaw, a direct descendant of the Laidlaw side of the family.

The conference opened with  the third in the series of Douglas Mack Lectures, given in memory of the Society’s founder, when  Professor Angela Esterhammer of the University of Toronto spoke on the subject ‘Identity Crises and Unaccountable Acts: More Contexts for Hogg’s Justified Sinner.

Bruce Gilkison
Standing beside the plaque dedicated to Captain William Gilkison (1777-1833)
Elora, Ontario