CFP: International Conference on #Radical Thought in the #Anthropocene – #Theories & #Concepts of #Critical #Theory - University of Graz

 CALL FOR PAPERS

What is critique? What can Critical Theory do for society? Which forms of critique may claim any relevance in late capitalism? How can a critical public opinion manifest itself in the 21st century? How can we distinguish critique from political ideologies and conspiracy theories? (see Fridays for Future, Querdenker, etc.) What characterises critical thinking? How can radical thought be rendered practically relevant?

The conference Theories and Concepts of Critical Theory takes place between 26 and 28 June 2025 at the University of Graz, and it approaches its main theme from various theoretical and practical perspectives. Based at the Faculty of Humanities, this interdisciplinary conference constitutes the second stage of the interdepartmental research project Radical Thought in the Anthropocene. The conference follows on from a first event that took place in 2023 and which was dedicated to different disciplinary approaches to Critical Theory.

We will bring the concept and idea of critique into productive constellations with a variety of concepts and categories pertaining to social and cultural theory. In doing so, and by highlighting fundamental societal and existential challenges of the 21st century, we will reflect upon the possibilities and potentials of a productive critique of society, especially concerning its implications for academic theory and lived practice. In view of the great global, societal, ecological and economic challenges, we will put to the test the social significance and practical relevance of cultural and social theory in the 21st century.

Keynotes

•

Rodrigo Duarte,

Belo Horizonte, Brazil

•

Lydia Goehr,

New York City, USA

•

Sven Kramer,

Lüneburg, Germany

•

Michael Thompson,

New York City, USA

Conference Board (University of Graz)

•

Stefan Baumgarten,

Department of Translation Studies

•

Stefan Brandt,

Department of American Studies

•

Juliane Jarke,

BANDAS Center & Department of Sociology

•

Susanne Kogler,

Department of Art and Musicology

•

Sonja Rinofner-Kreidl,

Department of Philosophy

Format

The conference is held in a workshop format. Incoming abstracts will be assigned to the following three corresponding themes:

Workshop I: Language, Translation, Society

This workshop compares and contrasts diverse forms and concepts of critique and communication, examining their viability in view of current societal challenges such as multiculturalism, multilingualism, migration and modern communication technologies. Amongst other things, we will address cultural readings and language-specific receptions of the first generation of the Frankfurt School, especially concerning their historicity, timeliness and their ‘afterlife’. We will also pay special attention to ideology critique and to critical approaches on technology. Further relevant categories include phenomena such as inter- and transculturality, deconstruction and text, medialisation and multimodality, globalisation and (digital) cultures as well as gender-specific issues.

•

Workshop II: Materialism, Aesthetics, Politics

The question surrounding (artistic) ‘material’ concerns one of the key themes associated with Theodor W. Adorno’s aesthetic theory. It is also of central importance regarding the current reception of Critical Theory. Such questions surrounding the status, nature and conceptualisation of the material world not only challenge the Marxist origins of Critical Theory but also its concrete political and practical relevance. In this workshop, we will compare and contrast approaches in Critical Philosophy and Critical Social Theory, as well as approaches pertaining to (Historical) Materialism and (Neo-)Idealism. Of particular interest here is the relationship between New Materialisms and Critical Theory. Further relevant topics include (world) literature, digitalization and mediatisation, art and freedom (from ideology), (artistic) activism and politics.

•

Workshop III: Humans, Spirit, World Relation

This workshop deals with the relationship between science and critique. Here, the role of the Humanities for critical thinking and the role of lived practice with positive future implications will be debated from self-reflexive and self-critical standpoints. Among other things, we will discuss in what ways scientific and academic thought echoes conceptualisations, theories and arguments from Critical Theory, and how science might be able to adapt them for a better life, for a radical “wild thinking” that may generate alternative realities, art worlds, even anarchist constellations. Dichotomous thinking, post- and transhumanist ontologies as well as Anthropology and History are further possible themes. The relationship between critique, reason and unreason, as well as between critique, indignation and resistance about the state of (world) social affairs will also be up for discussion.

We look forward to receiving abstracts (max. 300 words) for 20-minute presentations on the above-mentioned topics and themes by 20 February 2024 under radikalesdenken(at)uni-graz.at. We are particularly looking forward to receiving contributions from doctoral candidates and early-career researchers! The abstracts must be submitted in anonymised form in English including a mini-biography (approx. 100 words).

The Conference Board will accept abstracts based on an anonymous selection procedure. Acceptance letters will be sent out in spring 2024. The conference will be streamed online. Selected contributions are expected to be published in English by Palgrave Macmillan.

Contact Information

radikalesdenken@uni-graz.at

Contact Email

stefan.brandt@uni-graz.at

Decolonial Dialogues: An International Colloquium in Literature, Linguistics and Education

 Dates: June 27-29, 2024

Despite the decolonization processes of the twentieth century, minds, institutions and knowledge practices around the globe continue to be shackled by colonial logic. “Decoloniality” identifies and engages with ongoing patterns of coloniality. It unlocks new institutional, pedagogical, curricular and interdisciplinary avenues. Beyond the implementation of inclusion and reparation measures, it inspires radical new ways of being and thinking. “Decolonial Dialogues” provides a space of encounter between multiple perspectives. We are interested in how “decoloniality” pertains to both research and lived experience, as it exists in different regions of the world, and as it is constantly reinvented in the entwined fields of literature, linguistics and education.

Within this framework, the decolonization of knowledges and the decentering of thought processes are not only deconstructive endeavors, but also founts of renewed approaches to languages and cultures. How might we renew knowledge by dismantling the ideological constructs rooted in a prevailing coloniality? What new critical toolkits and conceptual frameworks allow us to trace contemporary evolutions in thought? Ultimately, how might these interrogations enable the (re)evaluation of identities from cultural and intellectual perspectives?

In addition to academic panels, this colloquium will include an "unconference” day and several outings and activities in order to foster connections beyond the confines of traditional academic structures.

Contributions may be in English or French, and may include theoretical, practical and experiential perspectives, as well as critical analysis. Presentations will be organized around the following three clusters below and the (non-exhaustive) list of proposed topics:

Decolonial approaches to literatures

- Rethinking postcolonial and decolonial identities

- Postcolonial poetics

- Deconstructing imaginaries and knowledge

- Representations of Indianness, Creolity and Chineseness

- Feminism in postcolonial and decolonial theories

- Migration and diaspora literature

- Indigenous literatures

Linguistic decolonization

- Language planning policies

- Ideologies and language and cultural planning

- Language revitalization

- Decolonization of language programs courses

- Role of ancestral languages

- Translation in the era of decolonization

Decolonization of knowledge & curriculum

- Decolonizing mental spaces in a postcolonial contexts

- Principles and practices of equity, diversity and inclusion in academia

- Unlearning and relearning processes

- Cultural studies and historical approaches Cultural sites of independence and decolonization Role of individuals and institutions in cultural practices

KEY DATES

November 30, 2023: 

Abstract submission deadline. 200-300 words in English or French via this link (https://forms.gle/Jhx8cq9bssWHRPEGA). For any questions, please contact nikhita.obeegadoo@ubc.ca

December 10, 2023: Notification of acceptance

February 15, 2024: Tentative program

June 27-29, 2024: In-person conference (no virtual attendance permitted)

Organizing Committee

Dr. Nikhita Obeegadoo, University of British Columbia

Dr. Patricia Lee Men Chin, Dalhousie University

Dr. Kumari Issur, University of Mauritius

Collaborators

Dr. Yvette Marie-Edmée Abouga, Unviersity of Yaoundé I

Dr. Sushma Dusowoth, University of Hearst

Dr. Evelyn Kee Mew Wan Khin, Mauritius Institute of Education

Dr. Karen Ragoonaden, University of British Columbia

Dr. Ritu Tyagi, Pondicherry University

Call for Publications: #Ecocriticism, #Sustainability and the #Literature

In today's world, we bear witness to epidemics and pandemics, the global climate change caused by human actions, as well as ecological collapse marked by floods, hurricanes, and earthquakes. These events underscore the risks and challenges of a human-centered way of life. At the same time, they remind us of the need to reconsider our binary and hierarchical divisions between humans and the Earth, humans and animals, mind and body, nature and culture.

In the 1970s, William Rueckert's groundbreaking work 'Literature and Ecology: An Experiment in Ecocriticism' (1978) delved into the relationships between humans and non-humans, the deep history of our planet, environmental transformations, and the changing micro and macro climates, all within the context of literature. Since then, these ideas have found a systematic place in the fields of cultural and literary studies and literary criticism.

Today, in the Anthropocene, we actively engage with post-human theories, ecofeminism, feminist new materialism, affect theory, actor-network theory, speculative realism, and sustainability.

'Nesir: Journal of Literary Studies' will center its 6th issue on the theme of 'Ecocriticism, Sustainability, and Literature,' set for April 2024. The issue welcomes essays that explore literary works, both fictional and non-fictional, from the early Ottoman period to contemporary Turkey. within an ecological perspectives, offering a comparative global literary outlook.

 

Possible topics:

• Environmental History
• Memory Studies
• Gender Studies, Feminism, and Sustainability
• Literary Theories
• Genre Studies
• Film Studies
• Video Games
• Graphic Novels
• Environmental Disasters, Epidemics, and Famine
• Post-humanism
• Critical Animal Studies
• Turkish and Ottoman Literature
• World Literature(s)
• Folklore / Fairy Tales
• Migration and Colonialism, Postcolonialism
• Travel Writing
• Translation

Contact Information

editor@nesirdergisi.com

Contact Email : editor@nesirdergisi.com

URL  http://nesirdergisi.com

Interplay of Community, Textuality and Orality: Comparative Perspectives on History, Culture and Society (20-22 November, 2023)-Comparative Literature Association of India and Department of English, Sikkim University, India

Literary theory has contributed towards the recovery of marginalised narratives and discourses in literature during the last three decades. The word, ‘minor’ has acquired a resonance of its own in the context of ‘national’ literature which tends to be part of a ‘great tradition’. Against such a background, the recovery of diverse indigenous traditions has become an important task of comparative studies of literature. Nations emerged as ‘imagined’ communities. However, nation-states were not ‘imagined’ in the crucible of prolonged struggles of anti-colonial resistance in Asia, Africa and Latin America, but were born of the political exigencies of imperial powers. The disconnect between the plurality of imagined communities and the integrative logic of the authoritarian nation-state, runs through many of these societies. This is not to fall into the trap of reducing all ‘third world’ literature into ‘national allegories’. The questions of representation and identity have acquired a salience today which they never had in the past. In the altered circumstances of post-colonial nations, competing nationalities assert their right to be heard and taken seriously. But this is an essential feature of all pluralistic societies.

 Literature is a means of negotiating difference through dialogue. Degrees of difference suggested by terms such as ‘textuality and orality’, ‘great and little’, ‘major and minor’ are not the same in all societies. In India, they date back to the pre-colonial past. With the arrival of print and modernity, they have gained new connotations that need to be studied.  Questions of culture and politics, aesthetics and ideology, literature and performance cannot be easily segregated in the history of people who have long memories of dislocations, displacements and dispersals. The borderline between the oral and the textual which are unmarked in their art forms need to be revisited. Folk-literature offers a treasure house of their recollections of traumas and survivals, along with the distilled wisdom derived from their struggles to live in harmony with nature. Over centuries of their evolution, the mainstream and the great traditions have drawn sustenance from the invisible roots of little traditions that run deep into popular imagination and social history. 

 India as a nation has been greatly enriched by the complex cultural heritage of the Northeast. The multilingual states of Northeast India have been exemplary models of peaceful co-existence. Their achievements in modern forms of literature such as the short story, the novel, drama and modern lyric have been vital and outstanding. In these times of climate change and ecological crisis, the Northeastern writers have much to offer by way of recovering the essence of an earth-bound humanism. We would like to explore the possibilities offered by the past and prevailing literary and cultural traditions of the Northeast, keeping in view their essential continuity and unity with the rest of India.

We invite papers with a comparative perspective that focus on literary texts and traditions in their historical, social and cultural contexts. They may not be exclusively about the literature of the Northeast, but should have a bearing on contemporary Indian social and cultural contexts. Papers which discuss theoretical issues are welcome, along with comparative studies of Northeast literature and culture with the rest of India. Questions of gender and caste have had different connotations in the cultural history of the Northeast. These may be explored both within the pre-colonial and post-colonial contexts. The colonial epistemology and its positivist logic have created categories which violate the very spirit of the communities which are described as ‘tribal’. Revisiting them will help us recover the voice of the people  that has been erased out of existence by their taxonomy.  

It will be rewarding, among other things, to engage with the issues of intertextuality and translation between the languages of the Northeast and the rest of India. We also encourage papers related to translation of knowledge texts of Northeast India. There has been a galaxy of Indian writers from the Northeast whose works have won national and international acclaim.  Indian English writing that has emerged from the Northeast has a distinctive flavour of its soil, which makes it universal and local at the same time. Questions of migration, acculturation, diversity, assimilation, homogenization etc may be taken up for discussion in relation to the Northeast or other societies as they may unravel the process of ‘othering’ that inform the construction of larger identities. A special session in honour of Temsula Ao will be held during the conference. As part of the conference, we shall also have Sisir Kumar Das Memorial Lecture and Swapan Majumdar Memorial Lecture.

 

Some of the sub-themes in the context of the main theme that can be taken up for discussion are as follows:

1. Region and the Nation

2. The ‘Vernacular’ Imagination

3. Folklore and the Carnival

4. The Sacred and the Secular

5. Self and the Other in Indigenous Traditions

6. Aesthetics of Orality

7. Literature as Resistance

8. Gender and Literature

9. The question of the ‘minor’ in Literature

10. Speaking from the Margins

11. Bilingualism and Translation

12. Translation, Pedagogy and Academic Social Responsibility

13. Memory as History

14. Comparative Literature and Academic Social Responsibility

 

Abstracts of about 250 words along with a short bio-note of about 100 words may be submitted to claiconferencesu2023@gmail.com before the last date mentioned below.   

 

Important Dates:

Last Date for abstract submission: 31st May, 2023

Selected Participants will be notified on: 30th June, 2023

Last Date for Registration: 15th September, 2023

 

Registration Fees and Details:

Faculty Members/ Research Scholars: ₹3500/- (Without Accommodation)

Students without accommodation: ₹2000/-

Students with accommodation: ₹5000/- (4 nights stay)

International Participants: US$ 200

 

Accommodation will be arranged only for students (UG/PG) upon request. For the other participants, the organising committee may assist them in finding suitable accommodation near the venue. Payments may be made to the hotel directly.

Upon acceptance, participants will be provided with registration details through email. The Registration Fees will include workshop kit, certificate, lunch and refreshments during the three days of the conference. Participants would need to become members of CLAI on receiving their acceptance letters in order to present papers, if they are not already members of CLAI.

 

The conference will be held primarily in physical mode, however some of the sessions will be live streamed. For further information please visit: https://www.clai.in/upcoming-event/

 

Officials to be contacted, if necessary:

Professor E.V. Ramakrishnan, President, CLAI

Email: evrama51@gmail.com, Phone no.: 9427519004

Professor Chandra Mohan, General Secretary, CLAI

Email: c.mohan.7@hotmail.com, Phone no.: 9810683143

Professor Anisur Rahman, Sectary, CLAI

Email: anis.jamia@gmail.com, Phone no.: 9811227313

Dr Sayantan Dasgupta, Secretary CLAI

Email: sayantan.dasgupta@jadavpuruniversity.in, Phone no.: 9831191181

Professor Rosy Chamling, Head, Department of English, Sikkim University

Email: rchamling@cus.ac.in, Phone no.: 9593987919

Dr Saswati Saha, Assistant Professor, Department of English, Sikkim University

Email: ssaha@cus.ac.in, Phone no.: 9474481344

Dr Abrona Aden, Assistant Professor, Department of English, Sikkim University

Email: aladen@cus.ac.in, Phone no.: 9832124196

8th International Conference of the Iberian Association of Translation and Interpreting Studies (AIETI8)

The University of Alcalá (UAH) (Madrid, Spain) and the FITISPos (Training and Research in Public Service Interpreting and Translation) Research Group, together with AIETI (the Iberian Association of Translation Studies and Interpreting) are pleased to announce the 8th International Conference of the Iberian Association of Translation and Interpreting Studies (AIETI8) which will be held from 6th to 10th March 2017 at the University of Alcalá (Madrid).

The main objective of this international conference is to continue the work of dialogue and exchange of experiences and projects carried out in previous conferences between professionals and the academic community, educational authorities and public and private institutions, as well as students and general public interested in intercultural communication in general and in translation and interpreting in particular.
The theme aims to reflect on expanding the limits of public service translation and interpreting.
We live in a globalized world dominated by English, but also in constant contact with less widely used languages. We are witnessing a relentless advance in technology applied to translation and interpreting, but also need linguistic and cultural intermediaries in common areas of conflict and migration. We demand the recognition of the professions of the translator and interpreter while their performance is, in fact, very frequently fused. The training of the translator/interpreter is proposed by universities, but its collaboration with other industry language professionals is required. There is an increase in the number of institutional relationships in education, but greater collaboration with companies is required. We are aware of the increase of multilingualism and cultural diversity; however, we need to redefine the concept of translation competence. We are, therefore, in times of change and aware that we need to overcome limits and assimilate fast advances; we, thus, need to sum up and not subtract.
AIETI 8 is intended to become a forum for discussion, aimed at reflecting on the most current and updated research in both academic and professional contexts. AIETI8 wants to get closer to the real needs of professionals in intralinguistic communication; the latest innovations applied to practice; the most comprehensive studies on translation and interpreting in different areas of expertise. In short, the main objective is to promote and disseminate the constant changes and advances in the field of translation and interpreting and their relationships with the environment.
The conference will be structured in two parts:

• Seminars (6<7 March 2017) dedicated to practical aspects applied to Public Services Interpreting and Translation.
  
• The actual conference (8<10 March 2017). The conference will include plenary lectures, communications, posters and round tables. Communications will have a maximum duration of 30 minutes (including the time allotted for discussion / questions). We look forward to receiving contributions on the following areas, but not exclusively:
  
• Innovation and technological advances in Interpreting & Translation in general.
  
• New approaches in the theory of translation / interpreting.
  
• Analysis of progress on collaboration between I&T professionals in general and the work market.
  
• Teaching and learning of I&T in different areas (education, health, administrative and legal settings).
  
• Localization, post[editing and automatic translation.
  
• Literary translation
  
• Audiovisual Translation
  
• Technical translations (legal, scientific, etc.)
  
• Interpreting
  
• The official conference languages will be Spanish, English, Portuguese, Catalan, Basque and Galician.
  
• We are delighted to announce that we have confirmed our plenary speakers (Henry Liu, Dilek Dizdar, Alexandra Krause, Maya García de Vinuesa, Agnés Agboton, Gloria Corpas and Hannelore Lee
  

ABSTRACT SUBMISSION AND DATES TO REMEMBER:

• Length: between 400 and 500 words (excluding bibliography)
  
• Deadline for receipt of abstracts: October 15, 2016 extended to 31 October 2016.
  
• Proposals must be sent following instructions on our web: www.aieti8.com
  
• Accepted papers for oral presentation will have 20 minutes for their presentation, followed by 10 minutes of discussion.
  
• Papers accepted for presentation as a poster will have an exhibition space and two sessions for authors to discuss their work with the audience.
  
• Roundtables will have one hour and will be structured around a common theme and should be structured as a forum for discussion and presentation of 2 or 3 communications.
  
• After the conference, authors who wish to publish their work may submit their manuscripts for which, upon acceptance by the scientific committee, will be published in an edited volume in electronic format. Delivery of manuscripts will be done following the style sheet available on the web in accordance with the instructions given in due time.
  

REGISTRATION

	Before 1 February 2017	After 1 February 2017
AIETI members	100 €	130 €
Non members	130 €	150 €
Participants	50 €	50 €
Postgraduate students (must show proof)	45 €	50 €
Undergraduate students (must show proof)	30 €	30 €

II. The Programme will consist of an academic programme and workshops which shall take place during the previous days 6 and 7 March 2017organized by the FITISPos Research Group and specially dedicated to Public Service Interpreting and Translation in order to commemorate the VI International Conference on Public Service Interpeting and Translation.


WORKSHOP REGISTRATION

	Before 1 February 2017	After 1 February 2017
Workshop 1	AIETI & AFIPTISP members and UAH students: 30 € / Non members: 40 €	AIETI members and UAH students: 40 € / Non members: 50 €
Workshop 2	AIETI members and UAH students: 50 € / Non members: 60 €	AIETI members and UAH students: 60 € / Non members: 70 €

The AIETI members General Assembly will take place on Thursday 9th March 2017. The Conference dinner will take place 10th March after the Closing Ceremony. AIETI8 will include a social programme which will be posted on our web page.


Further information at: http://www.aieti8.com


We look forward to seeing you in Alcalá !

1^st Call for papers (download pdf)

The University of Alcalá (UAH) (Madrid, Spain) together with the AIETI Association are pleased to announce the 8^th International Conference of the Iberian Association of Translation and Interpreting Studies (AIETI8) which will be held from the 8^th to the 10^th of March 2017 at the University of Alcalá (Madrid) Spain. The Beyond Limits theme aims to reflect on expanding the limits of public service translation and interpreting. We live in a globalized world dominated by English, though also in constant contact with less widely used languages. We are witnessing a relentless advance in technology applied to translation and interpreting, but also need linguistic and cultural intermediaries in common areas of conflict and migration. We demand the recognition of the professions of the translator and interpreter while their performance is, in fact, very frequently fused. The training of the translator/interpreter is proposed by universities, but its collaboration with other industry language professionals is required. There is an increase in the number of institutional relationships in education, but greater collaboration with companies is required. We are aware of the increase of multilingualism and cultural diversity, and we need to redefine the concept of translation competence. We are, therefore, in times of change and aware that we need to overcome limits and assimilate fast advances; we, thus, need to sum up and not subtract. The conference will be structured in two parts:

• The AIETI8 Conference (8-10 March 2017). The conference will include plenary lectures, communications, posters and round tables. Communications will have a maximum duration of 30 minutes (including the time allotted for discussion / questions). We look forward to receiving contributions on the following areas, but not exclusively:
  • Innovation and technological advances in Interpreting & Translation in general.
  • New approaches in the theory of translation / interpreting.
  • Analysis of progress on collaboration between I&T professionals in general and the work market.
  • Teaching and learning of I&T in different areas (education, health, administrative and legal settings).
  • Localization, post-editing and automatic translation.
  • Literary translation
  • Audiovisual Translation
  • Technical translations (legal, scientific, etc.)
  • Interpreting

The official conference languages will be Spanish, English, Portuguese, Catalan, Basque and Galician.

• Seminars /Workshops (6 -8 March 2017) dedicated to practical aspects applied to Public Services Interpreting and Translation (PSIT).

Important dates to remember:

• Receipt of abstracts (400-500 words, not including references): by October 15^th
• Acceptance/rejections of contributions: by December 15^th