CFP: Freedom of Speech in Classical Antiquity (grad) (10/31/03; 3/5/04-3/7/04)

CALL FOR PAPERS

Speaking Your Mind / Minding Your Speech in Classical Antiquity

A graduate conference in the Dept. of Classics
at Princeton University
March 5-7, 2004

Keynote Speakers:
Ellen Oliensis, University of California at Berkeley
Ralph Rosen, University of Pennsylvania

Whether a society espouses "freedom of speech" as the right of all
or the privilege of the few, the articulation of this concept rarely
(if ever) aligns with its practice. Every individual and group must
navigate multiple levels of constraint imposed upon expression,
whether these are explicitly prescribed by an authoritative body
or enshrined through convention and decorum. Similarly, agents
must negotiate changes in historical circumstance that affect the
laws and customs surrounding different kinds of self-expression,
including speech, behavior, dress, and aesthetics.

We invite papers that explore the freedoms and limitations that
agents encountered in the ancient Mediterranean world. Possible
topics include theories of free speech; self-expression that is
hidden by necessity (e.g. magic and mysticism); ways in which
speakers try to achieve their ends by modifying their expression
in response to political, religious,and social constraints,
including gender, class, and morality; the social contexts of
these constraints; and historical watersheds in the regulation
of expression.

The problem of freedom of expression is not confined to history.
We are living in a time when First Amendment protections have come
under renewed scrutiny; limits explicitly or implicitly imposed
upon public action and private expression emphasize both the power
of personal expression and the struggle to control it. Following
the presentation of papers, we will host a roundtable discussion
chaired by Josiah Ober to consider ancient responses in light of
contemporary issues.

Please send anonymous abstracts of up to 500 words by
October 31, 2003 to:

Dept. of Classics
ATTN: Graduate Conference
141 East Pyne
Princeton University
Princeton, NJ 08544.

Provide your paper title, name, institution, department, mailing
address, phone number, and email address on a separate sheet.
Email submissions should be sent as an attached file; provide the
information listed above in the body of the email.

Direct inquiries to: Eugenia Lao, elao_at_princeton.edu.

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Received on Sun Sep 07 2003 - 22:16:43 EDT