TEXTUAL REVOLUTIONS

An interdisciplinary postgraduate conference
University of Stirling, Scotland.
Friday 8 May – Saturday 9 May 2009
http://textualrevolutions.wikidot.com

Plenary speakers:
Professor Catherine Belsey
Professor Christopher Norris
Dr John Lavagnino

‘All revolutions, whether in the sciences or of world history, occur merely because spirit has changed its categories in order to understand and examine what belongs to it, in order to possess and grasp itself in a truer, deeper, more intimate and unified manner’
G.W.F. Hegel

Hegel’s belief in the redemptive power of revolution – that revolution is part of an essentially benign process of history – is at odds with Friedrich Nietzsche’s position that revolution is a ‘source of energy in mankind grown feeble but never a regulator, architect, artist, [or] perfector of human nature’. This tension over the nature of revolution constitutes our point of departure in an interdisciplinary forum that seeks to explore ‘revolutions’ and the language of revolution, with the aim of fostering discussion and understanding of both bloody and bloodless revolutions throughout the history of the arts. How will the revolution in digital media affect the future of the book? Has Marxism been swept aside by the competing claims of racial, ethnic and gender groups? How is language itself overturned in the pursuit of revolutionary aims? Has ‘the subject’ really been liberated by postmodernity and poststructuralist theory?

While the overall focus of the conference is textual, the organisers welcome papers from a breadth of research areas, which may include, but are not limited to:

Book History and Textual Culture
Modern Languages and Translation
Publishing Studies
Film and Media Studies
Religious Studies
Medieval Studies
The Gothic
Queer and Feminist Studies
Popular Culture
Postcolonial Studies

Papers that present problems and questions rather than absolute conclusions are particularly welcome. The organisers are looking for contributions from fellow postgraduate students and early-career academics. Please send abstracts of 300 words for a 20-minute presentation plus brief biographical details to Gary Cape and Steven Craig at textual.revolution@stir.ac.uk by Friday 20 March 2009. (Please note the singular form of ‘revolution’ given in the conference email address)