THE UNIVERSITY OF THE WEST INDIES
Cave Hill Campus, Barbados
THE FACULTY OF HUMANITIES
(RE)THINKING CARIBBEAN CULTURE
June 4 - 8, 2001
Believing . . . that man is an animal suspended in webs of significance he himself has
spun, I take culture to be those webs, and the analysis of it to be therefore not an
experimental science in search of a law but an interpretive one in search of a
meaning--Clifford Geertz (The Interpretation of Cultures)
‘Caribbean culture’ is a term bandied about both within and without academe with ever
increasing frequency. For example, at the bidding of the Vice Chancellor, the
University of the West Indies has recently undertaken what has come to be called the
‘Cultural Studies’ initiative. But what exactly do we understand by terms such as
these? Indeed, how can we effectively make use of concepts such as these in both our
research and teaching if we are not clear in our own minds what these mean exactly?
This international and interdisciplinary conference will attempt to both specify and
assess the dominant ways in which Caribbean culture in its various manifestations has
historically been conceptualised. Some of the issues which will hopefully be
addressed include:
* what do we understand by terms such as ‘race,’ ‘racism,’ ‘gender,’ ‘misogyny,’
‘nationhood,’ ‘Africanness’ or ‘Europeanness,’ ‘Afrocentrism,’ etc.?
* What is the nature of the relationship which exists between language and the
‘world’ and how does this impact upon our study of Caribbean literature?
* What exactly is ‘nation language’ and how does it accord with recent research in
linguistic theory?
* Is logic culturally-specific or is it a universal phenomenon?
* Can truth-claims about the Caribbean past be ‘objective’ or ‘scientific’?
* What are the major ways in which the Caribbean social formation has come to be
conceptualised and are these satisfactory?
Equally importantly, therefore, where particular orthodoxies may arguably have become
enshrined or even stale or disproved, this conference will also seek to explore
alternative perspectives from which Caribbean culture might / ought to be rethought.
Although the emphasis will be on the precise theoretical / philosophical frameworks
which inform the study of particular aspects of Caribbean culture, theoretically
self-aware contributions which seek to apply particular concepts (e.g. close readings
of literary or other texts or discussions of specific historical controversies) are
also welcome.
The panels presently envisaged include:
* What is ‘culture’? What is ‘Cultural Studies’?
* Epistemic shifts in the study of Caribbean culture;
* The relationship between culture and identity;
* Critical issues in the study of Anglophone Caribbean literature and related
cultural practices (drama, film, etc.);
* Critical issues in the study of Francophone Caribbean literature and related
cultural practices (drama, film, etc.);
* Critical issues in the study of Hispanophone Caribbean literature and related
cultural practices (drama, film, etc.);
* Theorising language in the Caribbean;
* Caribbean historiography;
* Caribbean popular culture (music, carnival, etc.)
* Caribbean perspectives on education;
* Caribbean perspectives on epistemology, metaphysics, ethics, and aesthetics;
* Religion in Caribbean culture.
* Conceptualising gender and misogyny in the Caribbean;
* Conceptualising sexuality and homophobia in the Caribbean;
* Conceptualising ethnicity, race and racism in the Caribbean;
* Africa and the Caribbean;
* Conceptualising diaspora and migration;
* Caribbean nationalism;
* The law and Caribbean culture;
* Economic development and Caribbean culture.
We are, however, open to further suggestions.
The ultimate goal of this conference is the production of a peer-reviewed
collection(s) devoted to the theorisation of Caribbean culture in its various
manifestations which will assemble the most important contributions.
Dates: The week of Monday June 4 - Friday June 8, 2001
Venue: Cave Hill Campus of the University of the West Indies, Barbados, West
Indies.
Deadlines: Abstracts (300-500 words) due: December 31, 2000;
Completed essays due: April 30, 2001.
Limits: Presentations must not exceed 20 minutes (5-7 pages single spaced)
Contact Persons:
Dr. Richard Clarke clarker@uwichill.edu.bb
Dr. Aviston Downes downesav@uwichill.edu.bb
Dr. Majid Amini mamini@uwichill.edu.bb
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