The William H. Gass Symposium was held in Umrath Lounge and the Olin Library on September 23rd, 2016, co-sponsored by Washington University Libraries and the Committee on Comparative Literature. The symposium examined Gass' literary work in translation, the importance of his work as a literary critic, and his role in promoting international writing through the International Writers Center in St. Louis.

Presentions included a keynote speech from Susan Bernofsky, the 2016 William H. Matheson lecturer, Associate Professor and director of Literary Translation at Columbia University, along with papers by William H. Gass Fellow Matthias Göritz, and Ignacio Infante, associate professor of Comparative Literature and Spanish, and a roundtable discussion with Lorin Cuoco, co-founder of the International Writers Center.