-----Original Message-----
From: H-NET List for Italian History [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On
Behalf Of Paul Arpaia
Sent: 27 August 2006 02:09
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: CFP-Dirt, Disease and Hgiene in Rome

From: 	 "Mark Bradley, University of Nottingham"  
[log in to unmask]
Date: 	August 20, 2006 1:18:45 PM EDT
Subject: 	Call for Papers: Dirt, disease and hygiene in Rome


CALL FOR PAPERS:
Pollution and Propriety: DIRT, DISEASE, AND HYGIENE IN ROME FROM
ANTIQUITY TO MODERNITY

A two-day conference at the British School at Rome, Thursday 21 and
Friday 22 June 2007.

Keynote speaker: Professor Mary Douglas

This interdisciplinary conference will examine the significance of
pollution and cleanliness in the art, literature, philosophy, and
material culture  of the city of Rome from antiquity through to the
twentieth century. Dirt, disease and pollution and the ways they are
represented and policed have long been recognised by historians and
anthropologists to occupy a central position in the formulation of
cultural identity, and Rome holds a special status in the West as a city
intimately associated with issues of purity, decay, ruin and renewal. In
recent years, scholarship in a variety of disciplines has begun to
scrutinise the less palatable features of the archaeology, history and
society of Rome. This research has drawn attention to the city's
distinctive historical interest in the recognition, isolation and
treatment of pollution, and the ways in which politicians, architects,
writers and artists have exploited this as a vehicle for devising
visions of purity and propriety.

As a departure point, then, the organisers propose the theme of
'Pollution and Propriety' and the discourses by which these two
antagonistic concepts are related. How has pollution in Rome been
defined, and by what means is it controlled? How does Rome's own social
and cultural history affect the way states of dirt and cleanliness are
formulated? Does purity always accompany political, physical or social
change? Does Rome's reputation as a 'city of ruins' determine how it is
represented? What makes images of decay in Rome so picturesque? It is
hoped that this conference will bring together scholars from a range of
disciplines who are interested in dirt, disease and hygiene in Rome in
order to examine the historical continuity of these themes and to
explore their development and transformation alongside major chapters in
the city's history, such as early Roman urban development, the Roman
Empire, early Christianity, decline and fall, the Renaissance, the
Unification of Italy, and the advent of Fascism. Papers might include,
but are certainly not limited to:

=>Death and burial
=>The history of medicine in Rome
=>Slavery and social pollution
=>Gendering dirt
=>Sexuality and virginity
=>Queerness and pollution
=>Public and private morality
=>Decay, decline and fall
=>Architectural unity and purity
Sewers and waste disposal; water supply
=>Urban segregation
=>The management and representation of disease =>Religions, purity  and
absolution =>Bodies, purging and beautification =>Ruins and renovation
=>Pollution as literary metaphor =>Modernity as pollution

It is hoped that this conference will be of interest to scholars working
in archaeology, cultural history, literature, art history, and the
history of medicine. The conference will aim to develop themes in the
history of the city of Rome, as well as providing a context for
examining general issues of pollution and purity.  Papers should be
original and should have not been previously published or delivered at a
major conference. Abstracts of approximately 200 words should be
submitted by November 30, 2006. Successful contributions may be
considered for publication in a conference volume.

Organisers:       Dr Mark Bradley (Classics, Nottingham)
Prof Richard Wrigley (Art History, Nottingham)

Email: [log in to unmask] 


The information in this email is confidential and is intended solely for the addressee.  Access to this email by anyone else is unauthorised.  



If you are not the intended recipient, any disclosure, copying, distribution or any action taken or omitted to be taken in reliance on it, except for the purpose of delivery to the addressee, is prohibited and may be unlawful.  Kindly notify the sender and delete the message and any attachment from your computer.