The American Folklore Society invites scholars from other disciplines to
participate in its 2000 Annual Meeting--"Contesting Concepts of Culture"
(Columbus, Ohio, October 25-29, 2000)
The theme for AFS 2000 is "Contesting Concepts of Culture."
Scholars across academic disciplines have been discussing concepts of
culture as they interact with developments in the organization of civil
society, the reconfiguration of public space in circumstances of world
media development, and cultural influence from local to global and global to
local. The vigorous debate on what culture is or should be is not
restricted to Western academic settings; it permeates cultural institutions
worldwide. We especially invite proposals on such issues as the ways that
culture has replaced race, ethnicity, class, gender, and sexual orientation
in political dialogue, sometimes as a way of avoiding direct confrontation
with these issues.
The American Folklore Society particularly encourages scholars from
other disciplines to attend the 2000 Annual Meeting to engage in this
discussion of culture. In order to facilitate contact between national and
international folklorists and the local community, the Annual Meeting
Committee will invite a variety of local and regional educators, community
activists, oral historians, arts administrators, public folklorists, and
representatives from humanities councils, arts foundations, and ethnic
heritage schools to offer perspectives on the theme of "Contesting Concepts
of Culture" in different formats of the program.
Columbus is an appropriate site for the consideration of a wide
range of cultural issues. Half of the population of the U.S. lives within
a one day's drive of Columbus, and it is remarkably accessible to the other
half of the nation's population. The manufacturers of America have
recognized Columbus culture as diagnostic of American taste. It is a
testing market for fast foods, frozen foods, shopping mall designs, and
plastic wraps--practically every imaginable product except Starbucks. It
was an initial testing site for cable television and has been considered
ground zero for American dialect studies. Francis Utley's study of the
North/ South divide on the pronunciation of greasy was conducted above and
below Route 40, the National Road running through Columbus.
Submissions to present at the AFS 2000 Annual Meeting can be made by
members and non-members alike. Please consult the AFS web site
(www.afsnet.org) for proposal submission and meeting registration
information. You may also wish to contact the Meeting Committee Chair John
Roberts, African and African American Studies Department, Ohio State
University, 486 University Hall, 230 North Oval Mall, Columbus, OH
43210-1335 (e-mail: [log in to unmask]). The deadline for submission for
proposals is April 15, 2000.
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and the Society for the Anthropology of Europe.
Have a look at our web site at:
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Editor: Tony Galt ([log in to unmask])
***********************************************
Julia C. Bishop (Dr)
National Centre for English Cultural Tradition
University of Sheffield
Sheffield S10 2TN
U.K.
Tel: 0114 222 6296 (Main office)
0114 222 0229 (Direct line)
E-mail: [log in to unmask]
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