Peter Josephson, St. Anselm College, pjosephs@anselm.edu

In keeping with the theme of the 2008 conference, “Categories and the Politics of Global Inequalities,” the Politics, Literature, and Film section invites proposals for papers and panels that consider works of literature and film in a comparative political perspective, either across contemporary cultures, or across history. We are especially interested in literatures of colonization, democratization, and religious and social movements, and what such works may reveal about particular political cultures and regimes, about instances of regime change, or about the nature of political life more generally.

Literature broadly understood unveils aspects of the human condition in its political contexts that may not be captured empirically, or that may be fully realized only by an exercise of the moral imagination. The Politics, Literature and Film section is therefore interested in promoting research that investigates the epistemology of art, as well as studies of particular works of literature, philosophic treatments of the arts in political contexts, and the role and power of literature (broadly understood) in political discourse. Participants might consider the following questions: Do artists have “knowledge” of political life, and if so what is the source of their knowledge? What may we learn – or convey - about a political culture or regime through its literature, and what are the limits of such a method? In what ways might such imaginative representations be advantageous to political life, and in what ways might they be disadvantageous?  The Politics, Literature, and Film section invites members to consider the ways in which representatives of other academic disciplines, as well as writers, artists, and filmmakers, may be included in our ongoing efforts to enrich our understanding of political life. In addition to the panel format of presentation and discussion, we encourage proposals that present scholarly work in creative ways.