Please note the following updates with regards to the University of Leeds postgraduate conference
on "Innovation and Recycling in Post-Unification German Culture, Society, and Politics", 11-12
December 2007
**wider scope - in response to enquiries, the scope of the conference has been widened to include
the 1990s
**CFP deadline extended to 12th October
**initial proposal for publication of conference proceedings accepted by publisher
**showing of the critically acclaimed documentary film 'Losers and Winners' (2006)
**conference poster now available at http://www.leeds.ac.uk/german/research.htm
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Innovation and Recycling in Post-Unification German Culture, Society, and Politics
Postgraduate Conference, Tuesday 11th and Wednesday 12th December 2007
Keynote speakers: Professor Stephen Brockmann (Carnegie Mellon, Pittsburgh) and Professor Bill
Niven (Nottingham Trent)
Bringing together postgraduate researchers from across the UK, this conference will consider the
way in which Germany is being (re)defined in post-unification Germany through its culture, society
and politics. The interdisciplinary forum will interrogate contemporary discourses, asking if they
signal a break with the past, illustrate continuities, or suggest new trends. To what extent are
themes and issues in contemporary German culture 'genuinely' new? Do they mark Wendepunkte
in German cultural history? Or are they simply evidence of a recycling of the past? What is the
relationship between recycling and innovation? How might we conceptualise change?
Papers are welcome from postgraduates working in all fields of German Studies. The languages of
the conference are English and German. Publication of the conference proceedings is planned.
Potential topics include, but are not limited to:
German wartime suffering
the 'memorialisation' of the German past
cinematic engagements with the divided nation from the perspective of a unified Germany
'coming to terms' with the GDR past
the construction of the 'normal' nation
displays of patriotism in contemporary German society
the position of Germany in international politics and its role in an expanding European Union
representations of diaspora in post-millennial film and literature
the location of Heimat in the 'Berlin Republic'
emerging writers' engagement with their role as author
Proposals of 300 words for papers of 20 minutes that explore any of the themes outlined above or
are considered relevant to the scope of enquiry should be emailed to the organising committee by
12th October 2007 at: [log in to unmask]
NB: Subject to a successful funding bid to the AHRC, it is hoped to offer accommodation and travel
bursaries for delegates giving papers. Please check the conference website (see below) regularly
for updates.
Also featuring:
**Workshop on 'Getting Published' run by German Life and Letters in conjunction with the
University
of Leeds' Staff and Departmental Development Unit
** Showing of the critically acclaimed documentary film 'Losers and Winners', for more
information, see http://www.losers-and-winners.net
**Conference social in Leeds
Registration:
General registration deadline: 30th October 2007
A registration form and further details on the conference can be found at http://www.leeds.ac.uk/
german/research.htm. Please consult the website regularly for updates.
We look forward to welcoming you to Leeds!
University of Leeds, Department of German, Leeds, LS2 9JT, UK
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