International Conference on Northeast India and Southeast Asia: Exploring Continuities- 25-26 October 2018, Ambedkar University Delhi, New Delhi, India

Synopsis

Northeast India, located on India's periphery, is a region whose socio-cultural world exhibits more similarities with Southeast Asia region than with that of South Asia. Such perceptive characterisation of the Northeast region, however, has had been scuttled by the constricted imagination induced by the nation-state paradigm and related ways of writing history. The uncritical reliance on colonial discourse to understand the region reinforces the colonial conceptions while simultaneously marginalising the cultural-historical legacy of resident communities. This has led to the creation of an idea of an insular (Northeast) region on the one hand while reinforcing the image of India as the mainland constitutive of a larger Indic/ South Asian culture on the other.

The proposed conference seeks to question this entrenched way of understanding Northeast India by way of situating it contiguously with Southeast and East Asia. In doing so, it will take a multi disciplinary look at lived reality, insider perspectives and experiences of transformation to identify the threads of interconnectedness between these regions. The conference will thus highlight the inter-regionality of Northeast India while culturally positioning it in a larger Southeast/East Asian tradition.

Concept Note

Human societies share common traits, including myths and values, materials and traditions, language and practices. The uniqueness of each arises partly from the way dynamics of power operate in the geographical spaces they occupy, and how societies negotiate, manipulate and control the direction of their development. The highlands of Northeast India, Yunnan and Southeast Asia offers a vantage point to look at this from the viewpoint of societies that till the 20th century stayed away from the statist political systems of a dominant mainland polity.

Referred to as ‘people without history’ due to the lack of written language, communities in these regions use orality as a conscious societal choice to transmit shared memories of an ancient past as well as the insights from the present. In a similar way, shaping the land through the widespread use of the jhum or swidden agriculture is a societal response for mobility and autonomy while maintaining food security. In the cultural sphere for example, many scholars of Northeast India suggest that the customs and traditions of many communities in the region in many aspects resembles those of tribal communities in Southeast Asia, from Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines and Taiwan. Similarly, the Tai-Ahom of the Brahmaputra valley in Assam finds many similarities with communities from Thailand. The shared palette of colours, patterns and motifs in textiles tells us how the rich cultural traditions of the peoples across the larger region have been intricately linked to the political economy at different points in time.

The study of cultures is today an interdisciplinary field incorporating a wide range of participants, approaches, and topics. The contextual study of structures, monuments, artifacts and oral literatures provides a methodology to understand the beliefs and attitudes of societies other than our own, and opens up possibilities for comparative investigation along the ‘Asian axis’.

These and other connections between the main aspects of life in the Northeastern Region of India, and the larger Asian cultural landscape can be substantiated from a transnational perspective. Conventional representations of Northeast India glosses over this history of cultural continuity and its connections, that has remained partly because of being in a marginal borderland over time. Highlighting the cultural continuities in the larger region, it is important to look beyond political boundaries, and reconsider the manifestations of identities in terms of geographical continuities and cultural dynamics.

At a time when the study of multidimensional cultural aspects has been attracting scholars and policy makers across the world, an engagement with the cultural axis between Northeast India and Southeast Asia becomes indispensable. In this connection, the need for a cultural mapping of the region has been suggested by various academic and professional cultural institutions. This would include establishing linkages between researchers and scholars from diverse disciplines, and promoting communication between various communities across national boundaries.

Contextualising Northeast India with the contiguous regions of Southeast Asia and Yunnan (South China), the conference aims to develop a multi disciplinary appreciation at experiences of transformation, identity (re)construction and the threads of interconnectedness between these regions. The intent is to critically engage and reflect on the larger historical trajectories that shaped societies and communities in these spaces using a comparative lens. In the process demanding multi-level engagement that questions preconceived notions around nature, culture and people in todays politically charged environment.

This conference invites scholars from diverse disciplinary backgrounds across the social sciences and humanities to share understandings of societies in the region. We invite papers embedded in empirical case studies which explore one or more of the following lines of inquiry. 

• Material cultures of the past and present
• Orality, language and literature
• Performance, ritual and practice
• Trade, market and state making in the region
• Regional similarities and differences – aspects of traditional life
• Colonialism, globalisation and the process of modernity
• Identity construction and power dynamics.
• Post-colonialism and its impact on gender relations.
• Peace, conflict and governance
• Environment, society and health
• Biodiversity, conservation and society
• Culture, psyche, morality and innovation interface

Conference Registration fee: Rs. 500/- for research scholars and students

Rs. 2000/- for Faculty (National and International)

Submission Guidelines:

Abstract (in English) of 250 words along with a short bio-note of 150 words should be sent to nefaud@aud.ac.in on or before 30th January 2018. Full papers need to be submitted by 30th June 2018.

Young research scholars working in the area are specially invited to present their work. We will be organising a special sessions for their participation.

Poster presentations are also welcome. They will be displayed during the conference and time will be allotted for an interaction between the poster presenters and others participants.

Travel Support: Limited assistance for travel support is available and may be considered for research scholars, independent researcher and early career faculty. Please send your request by 30th January 2018 clearly mentioning Travel Support in the subject line, along with your name and abstract title in the body of the email.

Accommodation Assistance: Participants requiring help in finding accommodation in Delhi during the conference may write to the organiser clearly mentioning Accomodation Support in the subject line, along with your name and abstract title in the body of the email.

IMPORTANT DATES

Abstract Submission Deadline: 30th January 2018

Notification of Acceptance: 28th February 2018

Full Paper Submission: 30th June 2018

Email for Abstract Submission and other Information: nefaud@aud.ac.in

Contact Info: 

Lovitoli Jimo / Surajit Sarkar

NEF / Centre for Community Knowledge

Ambedkar University Delhi,

Lothian Road, Kashmere Gate, Delhi 110006 , India

Contact email - nefaud@aud.ac.in

Contact Email: nefaud@aud.ac.in

URL: http://www.aud.ac.in/academic/centres/cck

Three-day International Conference on Commonwealth Literature, 8-10 February 2018, Osmania University, Hyderabad

Concept Note

“A room without books is like a body without soul.” (Cicero)

In today’s multicultural and multi-lingual society, the focus of literary studies has drastically changed. The focus has shifted to postcolonial theory, lesbian and homosexual writing, diaspora, ethnic studies and corporate fiction. In the last three decades, writers across the globe have enriched the literary scene by dealing with contemporary themes and issues. Some of these writers are Margaret Atwood, Peter Carey, David Malouf, J.M. Coetzee, Gunter Grass, Kazuo Ishiguro, Milan Kundera, Rohinton Mistry, Toni Morrison, Ben Okri, V.S. Naipaul, Michael Ondaatje, Zadie Smith and Ngugi wa Thiong’o. Today Indian English literature has registered a remarkable growth and many of our writers like Anita Desai, Bharati Mukherjee, Amitav Ghosh, Vikram Seth, Salman Rushdie and Jhumpa Lahiri have achieved international recognition. As Indian writing in English has come of age, it is time to examine where it stands in terms of other literatures in the world, and what are the reasons of its popularity.

Comparative Approach

Some of the books published during last three decades have made indelible impact on us. We now are the citizens of the world and can no longer afford to neglect the excellence of other literatures in the world. Just as national literature is the reflection of the national history, so is the world literature a by-product of comparative literature. We are glocal—both local and global. While comparing Indian writers/ movements with overseas writers/ movements, we are mainly concerned with relationships, resemblances and differences. Such an approach will give wider dimensions to the realm of contemporary literature.

Humanities/ Social Sciences

The conference is both comparative and interdisciplinary in character. Literature is closely related to humanities and social sciences. Certain political and social movements have all-pervading influence on common people as also on literary milieu. A writer is essentially the conscience bearer and moral watchman of his people. The conference will therefore discuss, apart from literature, like Terrorism, Popular Culture, Human Rights, Feminism, in all spheres of knowledge. Papers are therefore invited from scholars in the disciplines of History, Political Science, Philosophy and Psychology, within the larger framework of the theme of the conference.

Themes

• Landmarks in Indian and World Literature 1990-2018

• Globalism and Literature

• Diversity, Multiculturalism

• Local, Glocal and Global Identity

• Feminism

• Eco-Criticism

• Diaspora literature

• Minority literature

• Subaltern Studies

• Comparative literature

• Special sessions on Canadian, Irish, African and Australian literatures

Highlights

• Renowned Keynote Speakers and Resource Persons

• Plenary Lectures

• Panel Discussions

• Release of the Journal

• Readings by Creative Writers

• Book Releases/Book-Exhibition

• Conference Dinner

• Cultural Evening

Creative Writing Session

A number of creative writers will participate in the session. Ms. Roswitha, German writer in India, will deliver a special lecture on her recent novel.

Publication

Select Papers presented at the Conference will be brought out as a volume of essays—an ISBN publication—or as a special issue of the U.G.C.-approved bi-annual journal The Commonwealth Review. However, articles of only the subscribers will be considered for inclusion.

The aim of this International Conference is to encourage academics, scholars and practitioners representing an exciting diversity of countries, cultures and languages to meet and exchange views in a forum encouraging respectful dialogue.

Objectives

The deliberations of the conference will be useful for sharpening the research tools and strategies by the teachers and research scholars. The conference will discuss multiculturalism focusing on the ideological issues of caste, gender, religion, and the social movements affecting the new literatures written in different languages and regions with a view to bringing out the multicultural diversity of the globe. It is hoped that the conference will enlighten the delegates and scholars about the nature of the new literatures, the ideological and cultural deep structures lying behind them, and the way the multiculturalism of the writers has questioned the established beliefs and systems to uphold humanism based on the values of liberty, equality, and fraternity.

The City of Hyderabad

Hyderabad, the Capital of Telangana, is a historical city—well-known for pearls. It is a seat of learning and has more than seven universities. A multicultural city, it is famous for grandeur and royalty. Places to visit include Char Minar, Salar Jung Museum, Fort and the Lake. Weather in November is pleasant. Accommodation will be provided in the OUCIP Guest House on twin-sharing basis.

Book Exhibition

There will be a Book Exhibition where members can display their publications. Members who wish to get their books released may send copies of the books preferably in advance.

What to send

A 200-word abstract should be submitted by 30 December 2017 along with the information in this order: a) author b) affiliation c) email address d) title of the abstract. Abstracts may be sent to: iscstudies@gmail.com

Acceptance

Acceptance will be sent by the Academic Committee, within three days from the receipt of the abstract. Submission of registration fee and travel bookings may follow.Certificate of Participation in the International Conference will be given to all registered delegates. Convener, Academic Committee: Professor Jagdish Batra, Jindal Global University. Sonepat.

Important Dates

Abstract Submission: 20 December 2017

Registration Fee: 10 January 2018

Registration Fee

Foreign delegates :USD 300, includes accommodation for 4-5 nights, hospitality and conference kit

India delegates:

• Rs. 3500 per person. It includes Conference fee, accommodation, Conference kit and hospitality.
• Rs. 2500 per person, not needing accommodation. It includes Conference fee, Conference kit and hospitality.
• Research scholars, not employed and below 30:
• Local Rs. 2000;
• Outstation with accommodation Rs. 3000.
• Spot registration will not be possible.

Late Fee after 10 January 2018: Rs. 300

Kindly note that we are not in a position to assist with the conference travel or subsistence. Participants are requested to approach their institutions for travel grant and conference fee.

For all queries, contact:

Secretary, ISCS: iscstudies@gmail.com

Dr. Suman Bala:balasum@gmail.com Mobile: 0-9891097657

All correspondence may be addressed to: iscstudies@gmail.com

Three Day National Workshop on FILM AND DEMOCRACY-29-31 January 2018-Manipal Centre for Philosophy and Humanities, Manipal

Call for Applications: Applications are OPEN to all second year MA students/ M.Phil students/ PhD students in the early phase of their research.

Deadline to apply: 15th December, 2017.

Application Information: Maximum intake number is 15. Interested applicants may mail their resume and a 1000 word long statement of purpose to

mcph.filmndemos2018@gmail.com.

Accommodation: Food and accommodation of the outstation participants will be taken care of. Participants will have to make their own travel arrangements.

For More Details Visit :https://mcphcommunity.org/2017/11/18/workshop-three-day-national-workshop-on-film-and-democracy/

International Conference on Advances in English Studies, Women Empowerment, Business, Humanities & Social Sciences- Dec 28 - 30 , 2017, Goa, India.

Welcome to International Conference Goa 2017

​The International Conference on Advances in English Studies, Women Empowerment, Business, Humanities & Social Sciences - 2017 is one of the largest conference in the Social Sciences community held in conjunction with the UGC Approved Arts & Education International Research Journal by International Multidisciplinary Research Foundation (IMRF), Center for Scientific Research Education (CSRE) and DRPF University Macedonia. 

This International Conference on Advances in English Studies, Women Empowerment, Business, Humanities & Social Sciences - 2017 is designed with Special Invited Research Lectures, Paper-Presentations and Poster Presentations and is honored by bringing UGC Approved Arts & Education International Research Journal Vol 4 Spl Issue with ISSN 2349-1353 with all Peer Reviewed Conference Accepted Papers intended to reflect the pioneering state of the Social Sciences Research. 

The Organizers will also arrange special events such as non-technical talks connected with promotion of research in Social Sciences as well as cultural events

Call for Papers 

Original research papers/posters from Post Graduate Students, Research Scholars, Academicians, Scientists etc., in the manifold fields of English Language etc., disciplines related to Life Sciences are invited for presentation at the Conference.

English Studies

• Linguistics |Sociolinguistics |Discourse analysis |Language learning and teaching | Literature
• American literature – including African American literature |Jewish American literature
• Southern literature | Australian literature |British literature |Canadian literature | Irish literature
• New Zealand literature |Scottish literature |Welsh literature |South African literature | Translations

​

Women Studies 

• Feminist method |Gender studies |Gender mainstreaming |Gynocentrism |Kyriarchy |Matriarchy |Women's studies | Patriarchy |Écriture féminine | Leadership etc., and allied subjects

​

Business Sciences

• Accounting |Actuarial science |Computer science | Economics |Finance |Information systems |Law
• Marketing |Organizational psychology |Quantitative finance |Quantitative management | Banking and finance | Business |Business Ethics | E-commerce |Human Resources |Management etc., and allied fields

​

Social Sciences 

• Anthropology |Archaeology |Criminology |Demography |Economics |Geography (human) |History International relations |Jurisprudence |Linguistics |Pedagogy |Political science |Psychology |Science education |Sociology | Public Administration |Journalism etc., and allied subjects.

​

Submission of Papers 

Participants intending to present papers before the Conference are requested to submit soft copy of the abstract if its is for oral presentation or poster presentation and full paper if interested in publication (neatly typed in MS word format with 1.5 line spacing 12 point Times New Roman font on A-4 size paper) incorporating the motivation, method of solution and important findings of their investigation to icgoa2017@gmail.com

Important Dates

• Abstract/Full Paper Submission Lat Date 10/12/2017 
• Acceptance Date Will be served in 2 to 3 working days from the date of receipt 
• Registration Last Date 15/12/2017 

​Contact Us. ​

Carmel College for Women

Nuvem, Goa, India

To Talk. ​

+ 91 9618777011; + 91 9533421234.

Write to Us :icgoa2017@gmail.com ​

Visit Us: http://icgoa2017.wixsite.com/conference

International Conference:9/11 and the Beginning of the End of Liberal Democracy: Fictional Perspectives, 27-28 February 2018,Jadavpur University, Kolkata, India

Call for Papers :

The conference hopes to bring together original research papers on the images of Islam and Muslims post 9/11 in literary texts and media discourses and engage meaningfully with Islam as a human and historical phenomenon where Muslims are neither victims nor threats but active participants within modern liberal structures of societies that are themselves ready to shift from an ‘an uncritical acceptance of the category of religion’ to a ‘critical interrogation of religion as a category’ to understand Islam.

Concept Note 

‘Mankind’s ideological evolution’ seemed, for many, to have reached ‘the end of history as such’ in the worldwide triumph of liberal democracy and market capitalism - visually signified by the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989- as the logical culmination of the Western civilization. This narrative was ‘spectacularly’ interrupted by the events of September 2001 which seemed to signal the beginning of the end of the utopia of liberal democracy where capitalism had ‘broken free from the shackles of democracy’. The ensuing ‘global war on terror’ may be justified by ‘the state of exception’ but not all in the ‘West’ or in the ‘Muslim world’ (both conceptual rather than territorial categories that are not monolithic) endorse or wish to be involved in this war. This fact-of-the-matter however gets neutralized, if not lost, in the nuanced language games of fiction, written after the events of 9/11, and its own politics of words and images.

In the wake of an unprecedented scale of global violence and the spread of extremism by individuals and states, both in the ‘West’ as well as in the ‘Muslim world’, it becomes all the more disconcerting to realize that there are no ‘visible enemies’ that ‘triumphant globalization’ is fighting. Secularist triumphalism, the twin of triumphant globalization, which had rolled over traditional religious establishments, had been shaken by the Rushdie Affair in the late 1980s and the fundamentalist retaliations continuing till the early 2000s exposed not only the ‘uncertainties and insecurities of Western societies about the worth of basic liberal values’ (Malak) but also the distance Muslims had travelled away from the spirit and ethos of Islam. Far from being a liberating force, a kinetic social, cultural and intellectual dynamic for equality, justice and human values, Islam on 9/11 seemed to have internalized what the false Western representations had done to demonize it for centuries. (Sardar).The phenomenon of the ‘resurgence of religion’ cannot be seen separately from the hegemonic understanding of religion in the narrow and closed discourse of secularism. In the resultant ‘clash of fundamentalisms’, of Western secularism and Islamism, Baudrillard’s contention that the enemy, in the form of Islamic terrorism, could not in any meaningful way be regarded as an alien phenomenon coming from outside but from within the unchallenged triumphalism of a distorted logic of ‘civilization’, though controversial may not be entirely unfounded. It rises from a deep sense of concern for a globalization that as it grew more and more powerful, so did its cultural and spiritual crisis.

‘Provoked’, as it were, by some of these concerns and the sense that ‘the existing conceptualizations of Islam have in various ways failed to convey the fullness of the reality of what it is that has actually been (and is) going on in the historical societies of Muslims living as Muslims’ (Shahab Ahmad) this conference hopes to bring together original research papers on the images of Islam and Muslims post 9/11 in literary texts and media discourses and engage meaningfully with Islam as a human and historical phenomenon where Muslims are neither victims nor threats but active participants within modern liberal structures of societies that are themselves ready to shift from an ‘an uncritical acceptance of the category of religion’ to a ‘critical interrogation of religion as a category’ to understand Islam. With some of these intended aims we invite original papers of 30 minutes duration.

Sub themes may include but are not restricted to:

• Islam, Islamism and Secularization
• Politics or Policing of Recognition in Liberal Democratic Societies
• The ‘Representability’ of Islamic Fundamentalism
• The ‘Rushdie Affair’ and the Post 9/11 Novel
• Post-colonialism and the Migrant Muslim Writing
• The ‘Resurgence of Religion’ and the Neo-colonial Reality
• The War on Terror and the Global State of Exception
• Contemporary British Muslim Fiction
• Multiculturalism and Neo-oriental Narratives
• Globalization, the End of History and Prophetic Religions
• Holy War in the Media

Abstracts of about 500 words, with a 50-word note on the speaker, must be emailed to Dr. Rafat Ali before 15 January 2018 . Email; asdak.yunzi@gmail.com

Out-of-town delegates will be notified as soon as possible, to expedite the process of travel bookings. We regret that we cannot offer reimbursement for travel and accommodation, but we could assist delegates in making arrangements for accommodation, if required.

Annual Conference: Comics and Graphic Narratives Circle at the American Literature Association -May 24-27, 2018,San Francisco, CA

Call For Abstracts:

The Comics & Graphic Narrative Circle welcomes abstracts for presentation at two sessions on comics at the 2018 ALA conference in San Francisco.

Session One:

Underground, Indie, and Alternative Publishing & the Graphic Novel

The comics and graphic narratives circle at the American Literature Association invites papers that draw out the role of underground, independent, and alternative publishing ventures in contemporary graphic novels and art comics.

Works such as Tom Spurgeon’s oral history of indie publisher Fantagraphics, We Told You So: Comics As Art, 2016 and Charles Hatfield’s Alternative Comics (2005) have begun to highlight the crucial role that independent publishing houses and self-publication played in the work of medium-defining cartoonists and graphic novelists like Lynda Barry, Charles Burns, Chris Ware, and Art Spiegelman. But the full history of underground, indie, and alternative publishing in shaping the contemporary “graphic novel” and art comics has yet to be fully articulated.

We thus welcome submissions that explore topics including:

• The print history and legacy of underground comix of the 1960s and 70s, including the formation of voices and collectives, such as the Wimmen’s Comix collective and Art Spiegelman and Francoise Mouly’s Raw.

• The rise of independent comics publishing during the 1980s and 1990s with the advent of medium-defining publishers such as Fantagraphics Books (1976), Drawn and Quarterly (1990), and even contemporary indie publishers like Koyama Press (2007).

• The role of self-publishing, zine culture, and Do-It-Yourself (DIY) ventures in the larger history of the graphic novel.

Session Two:

Drawing While Black

Earlier this year, the campaign #Drawingwhileblack trended and momentarily highlighted the achievements of Black comic artists other artists of color who showcased their work via Twitter. While this provided an important moment of exposure, it might also be considered bittersweet. After all, the very need for this campaign underscores the extent to which contributions by Black artists have been underappreciated in both scholarly and popular forums.

With this in mind, the comics and graphic narratives circle at the American Literature Association invites discussion of the possibilities and challenges for Black comic artists. We welcome submissions that explore:

• The history of Black comic artists ranging from early contributors like Ollie Harrington, Jackie Ormes, and George Herriman to contemporary comic artists like Nilah Magruder, Keith Knight, Taneka Stotts, and others.

• How Black artists have navigated the comics publishing industry and efforts to heighten awareness of their contributions to comics and graphic narratives.

• Comics and graphic narratives that deal with Black and African American experience either in explicit terms like The Boondocks or via implicit allegories as in Krazy Kat, Cloak and Dagger, and Bitch Planet.

• The role of comics and comic fandom in Black and African American culture, more generally.

Please email an abstract (of no more than 350 words) and a brief biographical note to Alex Beringer (aberinger@montevallo.edu) no later than Jan 26^th 2018.

Contact Info: 

Alex Beringer

University of Montevallo

Contact Email: 

aberinger@montevallo.edu

Funded International Conference- Discourses of Weakness and the Futures of Societies 28-June 30th 2018 Goethe University Frankfurt

Call For Papers:

Reflecting one’s own weakness and putting it into words almost always includes a certain amount of willingness to change. Or, to put it the other way round: for a historical formation, the willingness to develop its own abilities or to find new orientations towards the future quite often is linked to the establishment of a variety of discourses of weakness.

Adopting such a perspective has an impact on assessing processes of social innovation: the motivation to employ something “new” is less related to the question of genuine innovation but much more to the wish to change a social formation, since one’s own current status has been recognized as “being weak” in one or several respects. Innovation thus needs to be related not only to ingenuity but rather to the willingness to change oneself or the social formation to which one belongs, which in turn often is a consequence of perceived weakness.

In order to better understand how societies prepare themselves for the future, how they deploy and adjust resources and the role of assessments of weaknesses in this process, the conference will discuss the following topics:

1. Regional specifities and global entanglements.

2. How are discourses of weakness articulated in the domains of politics, economics, law, knowledge and other fields of the humanities?

3. How were discourses of weakness articulated in different historical periods including the distant past?

4. How are discourses of weakness related to cultural heritage, memory and imaginations of futures (past and present)?

Funds:

We especially would like to encourage junior scholars from all region and affiliations to apply. We will provide reimbursement of traveling expenses and provide accommodation for researchers without financial support from their home institutions.

Proposals in German or English (max. 500 words) should be sent together with a brief CV by February 16, 2018 to:

Prof. Dr. Iwo Amelung (Amelung@em.uni-frankfurt.de) OR

Prof. Dr. Moritz Epple (Epple@em.uni-frankfurt.de) OR

Prof. Dr. Hans Peter Hahn (Hans.Hahn@em.uni-frankfurt.de)

Selected presenters will be informed by March 16, 2018. Working languages of the conference will be German and English.

Contact Info: 

SFB 1095 – Schwächediskurse und Ressourcenregime

Goethe Universität Frankfurt am Main

Postfach Juridicum 104

Gräfstr. 78

60486 Frankfurt am Main

Contact Email: amelung@em.uni-frankfurt.de

URL: http://www.sfb1095.net