CFP: The Imperial Presidency on Film and TV
Paper submissions are sought for the area, "The Imperial Presidency on Film
and TV" The imperial presidency has haunted the country since its founding,
from Washington's fear of being anointed a new king to Nixon's secretive
obsession with power and contempt for the democratic process. This area
(multiple panels) invites papers that investigate how the aesthetic and
historical similarities between the president and the king can be traced in
filmic images and narratives for a conference to be held
in the shadow of the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library,
November 10-12, 2000.
Papers might address the issue of how the iconography of the president does,
or does not, parallel that of the king in Hollywood film. Or, panelists might
explore the propensity of Hollywood to make of the president a star and how
this affects the representation of democracy.
Does the president as star produce in the spectator a mystified
relation to the political leader, and does this have implications in terms of
the health of democracy? Arthur Schlesinger's landmark work on the imperial
presidency proposes that the exponential growth of the presidency since World
War II has radically altered the nature of the balance of power. How might
this be indicated in filmic portrayals of presidential power during the
post-war
period?
Films such as Gabriel Over the White House, Dr. Strangelove, All the
Presidents Men, Executive Action, Murder at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, Clear
and Present Danger, Seven Days in May are clearly eligible, but all
presidential films, inclusive of documentaries, touch on this subject at one
time
or another due to its continuing relevance within our constitutional system.
A broad range of topics and approaches are encouraged. Papers are limited to
twenty minutes in length.
Send papers or proposals by Sept 1 to:
Isabelle Freda
igf9078@is6.nyu.edu.
After Sept 1:
Isabelle Freda
Institute for the History of the Production of Knowledge
New York University
FAX 212-995-4904
Phone: 212-998-8993
The Presidency on Film and TV conference is sponsored by the Film and
History League and Film & History. Full details about the conference, the
registration procedures, travel benefits, and the organizations can be found
on the
national web site for Film & History:
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From the Literary Calls for Papers Mailing List
CFP@english.upenn.edu
Full Information at
http://www.english.upenn.edu/CFP/
or write Erika Lin: elin@english.upenn.edu
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