University of Djelfa
Faculty of Letters, Languages and Arts
Organizes the National Seminar entitled:
⏳ Time remaining until the launch of the national seminar
Concept Note
Contemporary research has witnessed a remarkable shift in the study of literary and cinematographic narratives. Meaning is no longer perceived as a fixed content within the text or image, but rather as the result of complex cognitive processes related to directing the receiver's attention. In this light, this seminar proposes the concept of "attention engineering" as an analytical framework aimed at understanding how narrative is constructed through the organization of what is shown, concealed, or deferred, whether in literary language or in the cinematographic image. It aims to rethink the relationship between narrative and meaning from a new cognitive perspective that makes attention a structural element in the production of meaning.
Problem Statement
How is meaning reconfigured in literary and cinematographic narratives through precise mechanisms of attention orientation? In what way does meaning, far from being a pre-established datum in the text or image, become the product of a "cognitive engineering" that controls what is seen, neglected, or deferred within the narrative experience?
Objectives
- Unveil the mechanisms of attention orientation in the construction of literary and cinematographic narratives.
- Rethink the concept of meaning as a cognitive product rather than a fixed structure.
- Analyze the techniques of showing, concealing, and deferring in the production of meaning.
- Link language and the cinematographic image as attention management systems.
- Explore the relationship between cognitive processes and the reception of narrative discourse.
- Highlight the role of the receiver in constructing and reconfiguring meaning.
- Envisage new perspectives for analyzing literary texts and films through the lens of attention engineering.
Seminar Themes
1. Attention and Narrative Structure
Narrative construction through the distribution of attention in diegetic time, and the centrality or marginality of the event in shaping meaning.
2. Orientation Techniques in Literary Narrative
Fronting, postponing, ellipsis, repetition, and rhetoric viewed as cognitive management rather than mere linguistic ornament.
3. Attention in Cinematographic Narrative
The camera's role in directing the gaze, as well as editing, lighting, and sound as key attention mechanisms.
4. Attention and Meaning Production
Meaning viewed as the result of a cognitive choice, transforming attention into the main vector of significance.
5. Cognitive Narratology and Attention Engineering
Cognitive approaches in narrative analysis, and the contribution of cognitive sciences to understanding the construction of meaning.
6. The Receiver and Attention Strategies
Dynamics of reception, reconstruction of significance, and the interaction between receiver expectations and narrative trajectories.
7. Attention in Digital and Interactive Media
Digital storytelling, narrative games, and the role of digital platforms in reconfiguring attention.
8. Applied Studies in Literature and Cinema
Critical readings of fictional texts, analyses of films and series, and comparative studies between literary and visual narratives.
National Seminar Supervision Committee
Honorary Chair
Prof. El Hadj AilamRector of the University of Djelfa
General Supervisor
Prof. Issa LakhdariDean of the Faculty of Letters, Languages and Arts
General Coordinator
Prof. Ahmed BrahimiHead of the Arabic Language and Literature Department
Seminar Chair
Dr. Fatiha El Agab
Scientific Committee (Chair)
Dr. El Hafnaoui Bouzekri
Dr. Abderrezak Zitouni
Organizing Committee (Chair)
Dr. Ennaas Saidani
Dr. Djamel Regab
Submission Guidelines
- The paper must strictly fall under one of the seminar's themes.
- Researchers must send an abstract of around 500 words along with the full paper, presenting a clear problem statement.
- The length of the research paper must be between 12 and 20 pages maximum.
- The work must be original, unpublished, and must not have been previously presented at any academic event (seminar or conference).
- The text must be clearly written using the Cairo font, respecting academic formatting standards.
- The research must adopt an endnote system with sequentially numbered notes.
- The researcher must provide their phone number, academic rank, institutional affiliation, and chosen theme.
Important Dates & Correspondence
Proposals and correspondence should be sent to the following email address:
