Intersections: A Paradigm for Languages and Cultures?

Abstract

“Intersections” constitutes the thematic thread to the essays in this volume, whose aim is to depict the multi-facetted yet cohesive nature of Australian scholarship and practice in Language Studies. Running discreetly through all chapters, featuring prominently in some, this thread connects them all to a lived reality: the field of languages and cultures, as it is practised and reflected upon in Australian universities today, is essentially an interdisciplinary and interconnecting space, one in which linguistic and disciplinary diversities meet and gather forces. Although language scholars are well equipped to navigate that space, the issue that currently confronts them is that their universities do not necessarily recognize or reward what is a positive contribution to their institutional mission. In this volume, they collectively make a compelling case for their inclusion.