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1,200 expected for comparative literature conference, March 23-26
Posted March 9, 2006; 08:55 p.m.
Some 1,200 scholars from across the nation and abroad will gather on
campus Thursday through Sunday, March 23-26, for the annual meeting of
the American Comparative Literature Association.
It is expected to be one of the largest such conferences ever held at
Princeton, with sessions taking place in Chancellor Green, East Pyne,
the Scheide Caldwell House, McCosh Hall and Alexander Hall. The event
will be hosted by the Department of Comparative Literature, along with
other departments and programs in the humanities and the creative arts.
Sandra Bermann, chair of Princeton's comparative literature department, is vice president of the national association.
Focusing on a central theme, "The Human and Its Others," the
interdisciplinary conference will integrate the work of leading
scholars in the humanities with talks, readings, film screenings and
performances by creative artists. Participants will discuss issues
affecting the definition of the human and the humanities, addressing
questions such as: How does literature, along with the other creative
arts, help define the human? How has the human been shaped by religion,
politics, philosophy, science, economics, medicine and technology?
Against what images, ideas, dreams and nightmares has the human been
defined and refined? And why does it seem to be a particularly
pertinent, if not pressing, concern today?
One of the conference highlights will be a panel discussion on
"Literature and Human Rights" by Simon Gikandi of Princeton, Joseph
Slaughter and Gayatri Spivak of Columbia University and Domna Stanton
of the City University of New York, who is past president of the Modern
Language Association. Pauline Yu, head of the American Council of
Learned Societies, also is expected to attend.
The conference will include sessions led by many of Princeton's
best-known artists: Toni Morrison will give the plenary address in
dialogue with Valerie Smith; Joyce Carol Oates, C.K. Williams, Gabe
Hudson and Susan Wheeler will read from their work; Paul Muldoon and
Nigel Smith will present a concert with their rock band Rackett; and Su
Friedrich, along with guest director Ruba Nadda, will lead film
screenings.
Registration information and a schedule are available on the conference Web site.
Members of the University community may register at no charge with a
Princeton ID. Registration and book exhibits will be held in the
Chancellor Green Rotunda.