Call for Proposals: American Studies Leipzig Graduate Conference
At the onset of the 21st century, dissent and public protest in the US are apparently seeing a revival. Leftist and liberal movements, such as Occupy Wall Street or Black Lives Matter, as well as nationalist and/or conservative groups, such as the Unite the Right rallies or figures such as Kim Davis, have shown that America is once again at the crossroads of competing visions in a globalized world.
In addition, as historian Ralph Young has suggested, the notion of protest is also inextricably intertwined with the understanding of America in general: In his book Dissent: The History of an American Idea (2015), Young has highlighted the “interrelatedness of dissent and what it means to be an American.”
The sixth American Studies Leipzig MA-level graduate student conference on “American Cultures of Dissent” aims to focus on these issues and invites contributions investigating diverse representations and conceptions of dissent. The conference will specifically, yet not exclusively, focus on questions of counterculture(s), critical theory, grassroots movements, oppression, subversion, and the relation between the body politic and ‘otherness’.
Research questions may include but are not limited to:
- How do the concepts of race, class, and gender relate to and have an impact on expressions of countercultures?
- How do questions of sustainability and the environment intersect with political struggles?
- In what ways is the notion of dissent represented and negotiated in American literature, film, TV, music, art, comic, and news media? How do those cultural forms function as agents of resistance?
- What forms and methods has dissent developed and adopted in promoting change, and how is this conveyed?
- How do categories of space and region impact, contribute, and/or limit movements of dissent?
- What is the relationship of dissent towards the concepts of nation, statehood, and government? How has dissent been instrumental to the notion of civil societies and public spheres?
These and related issues may be examined through the lenses of literary and cultural studies, political science, sociology, historiography, media studies, economics as well as from an interdisciplinary perspective.
The conference invites all interested MA-level graduate students and professionals from all fields relevant to American studies. Participants will have a chance to present their innovative work to an international audience, allowing for various networking opportunities.
Please submit your proposal (max. 300 words) for a 20-minute presentation and include your name, current level of graduate study, research interests, affiliated university and/or current occupation, and e-mail address to asl-gradconference@uni-leipzig.de by January 21, 2018.
Please note that there will be no conference fee. A limited number of travel grants may be available on a case-by-case basis.
For more information please refer to the WordPress or Facebook page or send your questions to asl-gradconference@uni-leipzig.de.
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