Call for Papers:

Tactics of Resistance: Limitations & Possibilities

An interdisciplinary graduate conference hosted by the
Centre for the Study of Theory and Criticism
University of Western Ontario
Canada

October 12-13, 2007

The aim of this conference is to discuss various forms of resistance.
Considering late capitalism's ability to accommodate sites of
resistance and the ensuing incapacitation of revolutionary tactics and
impulses, we are faced with the questions: Where can we find sites of
resistance today? How do social, cultural and political constraints
impact on the prospects of emerging forms of resistance? Must tactics
always remain 'marginal,' situational and contextual?

We are looking for papers addressing alternative conceptions and
frameworks of resistance, and their potential for revolutionary
change. We welcome students, professors, artists and activists to
re-think resistance through an interdisciplinary alliance.
Accordingly, we are seeking contributions in the form of papers that
question, re-articulate and address a variety of issues, including
(but not limited to) citizenship, belonging, community, integration,
dissent, consensus, avant-garde and political subversions.
Presentations will emerge from (and beyond) the following fields:
anthropology, political science, sociology, nationalism and
transatlantic studies, first nations and diaspora studies, critical
theory, postcolonial studies, law, philosophy, feminist and gender
studies, comparative literature, architecture, film and media studies,
and visual arts.

The following is a selection of perspectives this conference will
attempt to bring together for fruitful dialogue:

- interdisciplinarity as an academic tactic
- redefining nationhood
- issues of resistance: class, citizenship and migration
- dissemination of local resistance
- global, local and transnational dynamics of resistance
- First nations and the politics of citizenship
- feminist critiques of the narratives of resistance
- tactics of engagement
- humour, mimicry, parody, irony as tactic
- visual culture as a site of confrontation
- the power of subaltern knowledge
- the political unconscious
- resisting/existing queer identities
- artistic interventions
- resisting resistance
- the (im)possibility of transgression.

Please send abstracts of 250-300 words by August 6, 2007 to:

confrontationsconfgmail.com.

Please include your academic or activist affiliation in your proposal, as
well as keywords and an applicable area for your topic.

Unfortunately, the conference cannot cover travel or accommodation
costs for the presenters. We strongly encourage our participants to
apply for funding at their home institutions. Do not hesitate to
contact us if you have any questions.

Yours truly,
Conference organizers.

Centre for the Study of Theory & Criticism
The University of Western Ontario Room 2345,
Somerville House London, Ontario N6A 3K7, Canada
http://www.uwo.ca/theory

--