Drawing on the Euroculture 2017 Intensive Programme theme, Visions of Europe, the Euroculture Scholar Conference Visions and Revisions of Europe seeks to create a space for dialogue about the juxtapositions present in contemporary European societies, which are pitting many visions of what was, is and will be, and the many revisions that are being proposed and in some cases, carried out.
Call for Papers:
Euroculture Scholar Conference
Visions and Revisions of Europe
June 29th, 2017
Jagiellonian University in Krakow, Poland
The year 2017 will be a pivotal one for Europe. The great recession and economic crisis within the Eurozone has brought with it the rise of social discontent and a crisis of legitimisation in the European integration process. Brexit has become a reality, and waves of populism have inundated virtually all corners of Europe. As rain clouds loom over the continent, visions of Europe’s future are manifold. What is certain is that European citizens need to act to help shape, revise and create a Europe that is safe, inclusive, prosperous and, perhaps above all, hopeful. Jean Claude Junker has set out a vision of Europe as “an anchor of stability in a changing world,” others are not so optimistic. The conference particularly welcomes presentations which deal with the questions of social, cultural, political and economic foundations of the current context as well as their potential outcomes and possible solutions.
Drawing on the Euroculture 2017 Intensive Programme theme, Visions of Europe, the Euroculture Scholar Conference Visions and Revisions of Europe seeks to create a space for dialogue about the juxtapositions present in contemporary European societies, which are pitting many visions of what was, is and will be, and the many revisions that are being proposed and in some cases, carried out. We invite papers from a wide array of disciplines and encourage interdisciplinary and cross-sectional approaches.
From a sociological and anthropological perspective, what are the images that European have of themselves, their societies, and how do these images differ from the outside? What are the influences of these visions / revisions from the inside out? What is represented on mental maps and which parts remain blank? Where are the borders of such maps? Which images form a part of their collective past? What kind of Europe do they hope for in the future? What are the different voices in the debate, who is being heard and which voices are being excluded?
Visions and Revisions of Europe also refers to representations of Europe in the media and arts. The lack of images consolidating a European identity, the alternative images and proliferation of social media and dubious reality, or fake news, has given way to a fragmented, sometimes warped, alternative or simply misleading image of facts and reality. How are these images impacting the social, cultural, artistic and political landscapes of Europe? How do artists, museum curators, or private collectors respond to these visions and revisions, and how do they help to change or maintain them?
In addition, we are interested in analyses of political, legal and institutional discourses on Europe. How is Europe represented in diplomacy and foreign policy? What images and values are being represented as particularly European? What visions are being exported, and how are they perceived and interpreted from the outside? What are the strategies in place to revise the political, legal or institutional frameworks within Europe to adapt to a rapidly changing global context?
Lastly, the conference invites visionaries and (re)visionaries to share their ideas, discuss the concept of Europe and its future, its past and its constant state of becoming. Papers are invited from philosophical and historical perspectives that deal with the intellectual and normative underpinnings of the Old Continent, its influences and projections of what is yet to come.