Realms of Imagination: German Colonialism
From a Cultural and Historical Perspective
9-10 November 2001, Carl von Ossietzky Universität Oldenburg, Germany
Conference Outline
International research on imperialism and colonialism was set in motion
by the 'cultural turn' as well as by colonial and postcolonial studies.
Political or economic aspects are not at the center of discussion any
more but instead questions relating to the formation of nations and of a
national identity with respect to those colonized and to the colonizers
are predominant. The question to be addressed today is to determine what
kind of effect the colonial discourse had on the cultural and mental
development of imperial powers. One thesis suggests that the knowledge
on the existence of extra-European cultures and the fact that Western
civilization perceived itself as a culture is based on a relationship of
mutual dependence. This theoretical approach centers around the terms
"identity" in the sense of a collective construct of meaning designed to
determine future action and "culture". Culture which is perceived as a
form of self-interpretation and of the interpretation of others, appears
to be the most suitable term to mark the constructive and productive
feature of difference, race and gender and – if perceived as 'set of
practices' – to also include the structural and social creations of such
minds. Defined in this way the two terms also have the advantage of
emphasizing the antagonism between different notions of colonialism. Thus the goal to be achieved at the
two-day working event is to identify the driving mechanisms behind
German colonialism as well as the traces it left behind – not in those
colonized but in the colonizers by adopting a historical,
interdisciplinary approach. At the conference major problem areas of
German cultural history exemplified with current studies will be
presented and discussed.
Venue:
Carl von Ossietzky University of Oldenburg
Ammerlaender Heerstr. 114-118
2611 Oldenburg
Building A 14, Senate Room
The Programme:
Friday 9 November:
>From 8:30 a.m. Registration
9:00 Welcome
9:30 Opening speech:
Russel A. Berman, Stanford Unversity:
Secondary Colonialism, The Search for the Hidden Agenda
10:30 Coffee break
10:45 Section I : Geordnete Völker
Fatima El-Tayeb, University of Hamburg:
'Was kann denn der arme Mohr dafür' or: Is there a German Racism?
Helmut Bley, Universität Hannover:
Der Traum vom Reich? – Rechtsradikalismus als Antwort auf gescheiterte
Illusionen im Deutschen Kaiserreich 1900-1918
Cornelia Essner,Technische Universität Berlin:
Koloniale Blutsreinheit und völkische Phobie (1884-1914)
Commentary: Ulrike Jureit, Hamburger Institut für Sozialforschung
1:30 p.m. Lunch break
3:00 – 6:00 Section II: Gesichtete Fremde
Sierra A. Bruckner, Berlin:
Pleasures of the Metropolis. Völkerschauen and the Pursuit of Colonial
Efficiency
Sybille Benninghoff-Lühl, Humboldt Universität Berlin:
'Darwins Augen'. Aspekte des Sehens in Texten von Naturforschern,
Grosswildjägern und Fotografen
David M. Ciarlo, University of Wisconsin, Madison:
Consuming Race: from Exotic Imagery to the Colonialist Imaginary in
the Illustrated Advertisement, 1885 to 1916
Commentary: Alexander Honold, Berlin
4:30 Coffee break
7:00 Conference dinner
Saturday 10 November
9:30 a.m. Section III: Kulturhoheiten
Wolfgang Struck, Christian-Albrechts-Universität Kiel:
Die Geburt des Abenteuers aus dem Geist des Kolonialismus.
Exotistische Filme in Deutschland nach dem Ersten Weltkrieg
John K. Noyes, University of Cape Town:
Gender, Mobility and the Transfer of Culture –
Raggy in South West Africa
Laura Wildenthal, Texas A&M University:
Geschlechterspannungen und Rassismus im deutschen Kolonialismus
Commentary: Uta C. Poiger, University of Washington.
12:00 Lunch break
1:30 p.m. Section IV: Laboratorien der Moderne
Pascal Grosse, Humboldt Universität Berlin:
Zwischen Privatheit und Öffentlichkeit: Kolonialmigration in
Deutschland, 1895-1940
Wolfgang U. Eckert, Universität Heidelberg:
Reminiszenz, Revisionismus, Rekonstruktion – ärztliche
Kolonialphantasien, 1920-1945
Marcia Klotz, University of California, Irvine:
Social Reform, Colonial Reform, and the Liquidation of Human Value
Commentary: Christian Geulen, Kulturwissenschaftliches Institut, Essen
3:30 Coffee break
4:30 Closing discussion
5:00 Close of Conference
Registration:
To register for the conference please write to:
Carl von Ossietzky
Universität Oldenburg
FB 03, Historisches Seminar
D-26111 Oldenburg.
You can also register by fax or e-mail: Fax: (0) 441-798-3021
E-mail: hist.fb3@uni-oldenburg.de
Please also indicate your postal address and telephone number.
The deadline for registrations is 1 June 2001.
Conference Fee:
The conference fee is DM 30 (for the copies distributed) and is to be
paid on registration.
Accommodation:
The tourist information office of Oldenburg can be reached by
Tel.: (0)-441-15744; Fax: (0)-441-248 92 02
E-mail: info@oldenburg.de
Internet: http://www.oldenburg-tourist.de
and provides information on accommodation in hotels or (private)
guesthouses in all price categories. It also makes available registers
of accommodation facilities.
Organizer and Managing Scientist:
Dr. Birthe Kundrus (contact information listed below)
For short-notice changes in the programme or further information on the
conference, please view the department´s homepage at
www.uni-oldenburg.de/fb3/aktuelles.
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