The Center for International History COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY Announces Symbols of Exclusion
A Graduate Student Conference
April 4, 2008
Deadline for abstract submission (extended): January 31, 2008
From the totem to the noose, symbols have been used not only to unify people, but also to signify the exclusion of particular groups from social, ethnic, religious, or national communities. This conference seeks to address the following questions: How have symbols accrued meanings and power, and how have these meanings both created and reflected new social realities? How have various political, cultural, and religious ideologies taken material form? What is the relationship between various symbols and historical memory? How have the meanings of symbols changed in different historical contexts, and how have they been deployed by specific groups? As this conference is presented in conjunction with the Center for International History’s annual theme, “In the Name of Humanity,” we are also interested in the ways in which symbols have been deployed to mark the changing definitions and conceptual boundaries of humanity itself.
We invite submissions from all time periods – ancient, medieval, early modern, and modern – and various geographic regions. Papers on topics that are broadly transnational or global in scope are preferred. Additionally, we encourage interdisciplinary research, and although proposals with a historical perspective are particularly welcome, we will also consider contributions from the fields of anthropology, sociology, literary studies, political science, and economics. Please send an abstract of no more than 300 words and a recent CV as email attachments (Word preferred) by January 31, 2008 and any inquiries to Aimee Genell at the following address: amg2159@columbia.edu.
For more information regarding the conference, please refer to the Centre for International History’s website: http://www.columbia.edu/cu/cih
Limited funding for travel and assistance in arranging accommodation may be available.
Important dates:
Submission deadline: January 31, 2008
Conference: April 4, 2008
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