Cultural Studies paper by Lénárt-Cheng, Helga
Collective Covid Diaries in Hungary and the US (Accepted)
Type of Abstract (select): Paper presentationAbstract (max. 250 words):
Based on my 2022 book Story Revolutions (https://www.upress.virginia.edu/title/5758/) I will discuss current trends in collective diary-writing in Hungary and the US, with a specific focus on online Covid diaries. My presentation will first sketch the historical origins of crowd-sourced collective diaries in the Enlightenment and the 1930s. I will also contrast the "forgotten" 1918 flu pandemic with the heavily documented 2020 pandemic.
In examining contemporary cases of collective digital diaries, I will mostly focus on the issue of data privacy, and the ethical and legal implications of sharing one's personal story on public platforms.
Brief Professional Bio (max. 100 words):
Helga Lenart-Cheng grew up in Hungary, studied at JATE and ELTE and received her PhD in Comparative Literature from Harvard University. She teaches at Saint Mary's College of California, where she is also Director of the Honors Program. Her co-authored book on Alexander Lenard (Lénárd Sándor, no family relations, ) was published in Hungarian in Budapest in 2016: https://www.atlantiszkiado.hu/en/konyv/lenard-sandor-vilagok-vandora/. Her newest book, Story Revolutions: Collective Narratives from the Enlightenment to the Digital Age, came out in 2022. For more information visit helgalenartcheng.com