USES & ABUSES OF CAESAR:
FROM ANTIQUITY TO THE 21ST CENTURY

An international conference to be held
on Friday 28 and Saturday 29 March 2003
at the British School at Rome, Italy

Call for Papers

From the labelling of Andreotti as il divo Giulio, to Berlusconi's appeal to
Caesar, and the annual rituals of commemoration whereby spring flowers are
placed at the feet of Caesar's statue and in his forum, the dictator is
still central to modern Italian political discourse. This usage is but one
example of the extraordinary and enduring presence of Julius Caesar in
post-classical cultures. Associated with a sharp turning point in the
history of western civilisation, Caesar quickly took on monumental,
quasi-mythic proportions. Whether as founder or destroyer, over the
centuries Caesar's image has become a site for the exploration of concerns
about warfare and politics and been utilised in the formation of many
national identities. From a different perspective, Caesar has also been used
to construct or interrogate personal identity (including uniqueness,
leadership, even divinity), morality and virtue.

This conference seeks to examine Caesar as a significant term in the
formation of national and personal self-definitions. It sets out to explore
the dictator's reception across a wide chronological range and diverse
media, including the new technologies. While retaining a strong focus on
Julius Caesar, the conference will be both interdisciplinary and
cross-cultural. It is expected that selected papers would be published in
book form, as with some previous BSR conferences.

Contributions are invited from scholars working in the widest possible range
of disciplines, and might include Caesar's reception in the following areas:
ancient history, archaeology, biography, consumerism & advertising,
erotica,
film and television, historical fiction, historiography, military history &
theory (inc. war games & computer games), museology, music, pedagogy,
political science, theatre, the visual arts. Proposals should consist of an
abstract (c. 500 words) and brief cv (inc. any relevant publications), and
be sent in an email - not as an attachment.

Proposals should be sent to Dr Maria Wyke (lkswykereading.ac.uk) by 31 July
2002. For further information on the conference's location, please visit the
British School at Rome's web-site
(http://www.bsr.ac.uk).