(Mis)representations: Defining Identity through Power and Privilege
A Humanities Conference
“…the power that one man exerts over another is always perilous. I am not saying that power, by nature, is evil; I am saying that power, with its mechanisms, is infinite…” – Michel Foucault
The English Department invites all CHESS students and faculty members to participate in our first annual Cross-disciplinary Humanities Conference tentatively scheduled for February 9, 2015.
Representations of power have had a significant impact on literary, social, and psychological theories. Theorists have drawn connections between these representations of power and the formation of identity.
To what extent does power, or a lack thereof, affect identity formation as an individual, or as a broader social group? How is identity shaped or damaged by representations—or perhaps misrepresentations—of power or privilege?
We invite proposals for presentations that may be grouped into panels by the conference committee. Please submit a proposal or abstract of approximately 350 words. The deadline to submit a proposal for consideration is January 16, 2015. Please submit all proposals in PDF form to peffer002@knights.gannon.edu.
Topics may include, but are not limited to, discussions of the following:
- The physical body as symbol or conduit of power
- Means, money, and status—economic power
- Changing or reshaping identity
- Imperialism, diaspora, and empire
- Race, ethnicity, minority issues
- Power distribution in gender and/or sexualities
- Disciplinary power
- The power of politics
- Social power—social media, group think, etc.
- Power of the mind—brainwashing, norming, defense mechanisms
- Authorial power
Broad interpretations of the conference theme are welcome!