It seems self-evident that ours is an age of perpetual crisis. From the 2008 financial crisis, to the COVID-19 pandemic to the climate and ecological crises that are raging on endlessly in the background of (civil) wars, epidemics of mental and physical health, growing inequalities in and between countries and rampant precarity. In the shadow of human progress, some intellectuals have argued, lies nothing less than an accumulation of crises and great events of suffering and destruction. Others have seen crisis as a necessity for progress to be possible at all, and others yet have gladly used crises to further certain ideological ends.
Whichever way one looks at it, the phenomenon of crisis seems to be a key element of the beginning of the twenty-first century. Not often enough, however, do we stop to reflect on how the concept of crisis so deeply penetrated the cultural consciousness of much of the world; what political and cultural meanings are attached to the concept, what ends it is made to serve and how it has been instrumentalised historically. Further, what character does crisis take on in our interconnected age?
With this interdisciplinary Graduate Conference, we intend to probe the nature of this concept from a host of different approaches, such as (but not limited to) history, politics, media, culture and social science - all of this from a global perspective.
We hope to create a space through which we can reconsider the role and meaning of crisis as a socio-political category, both shaping and being shaped by human worlds.
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This call is open to interdisciplinary papers from a variety of fields, such as anthropology, history, political theory, media, or any field which can contribute to the discussion of crisis or crises. We welcome papers that tackle diverse topics such as a specific historical crisis, philosophical or epistemological understandings of crisis, human perception of crisis, how discourses of crises may distract from ongoing histories of subaltern struggle, encouraging authors to frame specific issues in a framework of thought that can help understand the phenomenon in a broader, global context.
The conference will take place in English and abstracts are also expected in English. The conference will take place in person in Bologna, Italy, from the 18th to the 19th of May 2023.
Please fill out the Google Form (linked down below) which will require a short abstract of your proposed topic of approximately 250-300 words and a 100 word bio by January 15th, 2023. Speakers will have 20 minutes to present their papers so please ensure your topic and scope are appropriate. In case of any questions please do not hesitate to contact the aforementioned email.
Deadline: January 15th, 2023
