italian-studies: Scholarly discussions in any field of Italian studies
Forwarded announcement on behalf of Neelam Srivastava, University of Newcastle (UK) [log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]>
Study Day on Italy and Postcolonial Studies
Monday June 10th, 2013
Room G.05, Percy Building, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne (UK)
This study day seeks to assess the impact of Italy as an important, if under-recognized presence in postcolonial studies, and to re-think the ways the field has developed mainly around British and French imperial spaces. In this seminar, we hope to initiate a conversation aroundItaly’s intellectual contribution to postcolonial thought, by inviting a number of key scholars in this rapidly emerging area of study (see Andall and Duncan 2005 and 2011; Fuller 2007; Palumbo 2003; Lombardi-Diop and Romeo 2012). Itseems to be an opportune moment to re-configure the field in an explicitly relational/comparative dimension that places Italian material in dialogue with the more established Anglophone/Francophone archives. Our participants are scholars who have engaged with the theoretical dimensions of Italy as a postcolonial entity, as well those who have examined specific historical, literary and political instances of Italian colonialism and postcolonialism.
Invited Speakers: Derek Duncan, Sandro Mezzadra, Miguel Mellino, Sandra Ponzanesi, Robert Young.
Some of the issues we aim to cover and questions we hope to pose are:
· How has Italian colonialism shaped twentieth-century responses to empire and decolonization movements (e.g. the Ethiopian war of 1935 and Pan-Africanism; decolonization in the Horn of Africa; anti-Fascist and anti-colonialist writings in the 1930s)?
· What intellectual contribution has Italy made to the formation of an anti-colonial thought and to the development of postcolonial studies as a body of theory (e.g. the work of Antonio Negri, Giorgio Agamben, Antonio Gramsci)?
· In what ways can we think of Italy as a postcolonial entity? Related themes might include the parallels between anti-fascist resistance and decolonization struggles;contemporary processes of “accoglienza” (or lack thereof) of immigrants; postcolonial cultural legacies in contemporary Italy.
· Italian anti-colonialism, and historical links between political parties and movements in Italy and in the colonised world.
· The 'Institutionalisation' of Italian Postcolonial Studies/Postcolonial Italy Studies - How has the field taken shape and consolidated itself? Which texts have been included? Which texts haven’t been? How has its evolution differed from Anglo-American postcolonial studies?
· What difficulties and what new possibilities are occasioned by Italy's 'late reception' of postcolonial theory?
We hope that this study day will provide an opportunity to take stock of the rapidly expanding body of work taking place at the intersection of Italian Studies and Postcolonial Studies, to think about what is new and exciting in this work and the ways it might challenge existing ideas of both Italy and ‘the postcolonial’, and ultimately to identify unexplored or under-explored avenues of enquiry to which we might address ourselves in the future.
Outline
10.00 - 10.30 Registration
10.30 - 11.00 Introductions - Neelam Srivastava and Tom Langley give a short introduction to the day, what brought it about, and what it hopes to achieve.
11.00 – 13.00 Session 1 - Robert Young, “Sognando la Palestina: Italy and Israel/Palestine”.
Derek Duncan, “Primo Levi and the Postcolonial Subject”.
Sandra Ponzanesi, “Italian Postcolonial Studies in Transition”.
13.00-14.00 Lunch
14.00-16.00 Session 2 – Sandro Mezzadra, “The Poverty of ‘Italian Theory’: Postcolonialism Beyond Borders”.
Neelam Srivastava, “’Né un uomo né un soldo’: A Brief History of Italian Anticolonialism”.
Miguel Mellino, “De-provincializing Italy. Notes on Coloniality, Race and Racism in the Italian Context.”
16.00-16.20 Coffee break
16.20-18.00 Roundtable -- Chaired by Neelam and Tom, with the participation of Fabrizio De Donno, Angelica Pesarini, Loredana Polezzi, and others. We envisage participants presenting short position papers of no more than 5 minutes responding to questions circulated in advance and extending beyond these, before moving on to reflect and build upon the day’s conversations.
20.00 Dinner
There is no registration fee, but please email Neelam Srivastava [log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]> or Tom Langley [log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]> if you wish to attend the study day.
________________________________
Alan O'Leary
School of Modern Languages and Cultures (Italian), University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT UK
Tel: +44 (0)113-3433633
Senior Lecturer in Italian http://leeds.academia.edu/AlanOLeary/About
Editor annual Film Issue of The Italianist http://maney.co.uk/index.php/ita_film
Research blog http://holidaypictures.tumblr.com/
Teaching blog http://italiancinema-mumbai.tumblr.com/<http://holidaypictures.tumblr.com/>
**********************************************************************
To join the list, send the message: join italian-studies YOUR NAME
to: [log in to unmask]
To send a message to the list, address it to:
[log in to unmask]
To leave the list, send the message: leave italian-studies
to: [log in to unmask]
In order to report problems or to contact the list's owners, write to:
[log in to unmask]
For further information, visit our web site:
http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/lists/italian-studies.html
|