cfp.english.upenn.edu

Global Lives

The rapid changes currently experienced in the different spheres of contemporary life are loosely addressed by the term “globalization.”

How do we theorize these changes? And perhaps more importantly, while these changes are often considered a global phenomenon, are they not also shaped by a set of discourses? This calls for a reconsideration of key terms such as “domination” and “hegemony”, as well as of the various intellectual/cultural positions associated with them. In particular, we aim to reconsider the cultural sphere as a globalized phenomenon in which cultural products circulate on a worldwide scale, and as a sphere where “global” experiences are articulated.

The conference will attempt to explore some of the many aspects of this globalized view of culture, as well as other aspects of global lives, economical, political or other. We seek to engage scholars from a wide range of disciplines to bring together the different theories and perspectives of globalization in order to articulate the diverse experiences of living in a globalized world.

Topics include but are not limited to:
- Transnational cinema and global film industry
- New media and transnational communication networks
- Mass media and global culture industry
- Transnational literature(s)
- Colonialism and postcolonial theory (empire, diaspora, exile, migration)
- Neoliberalism
- Emerging discourses of globalization, academic and popular
- Globalization as historical process
- Global material culture
- Circulation of capital, goods, and people
- Labor and work life on a global scale
- Travel and tourism
- Cultural Geography and Cartography
- Educational Responses to a Global Culture
- Popular movements and the various shapes of resistance
- Ecology on a worldwide scale
- National identities
- Military, defense, homeland security and warfare studies

Submission and acceptance to the conference is based on blind peer review of a 250-300 word abstract. Panels and non-traditional presentations will also be considered. Graduate students interested in submitting should email an abstract, paper title, 2-3 sentence bio, affiliation and contact information to catgradconf@gmail.com by June 30, 2012. Presenters will be informed by August 1, 2012.

Conference Website:
http://www.catgradconf.com