International Conference
'Middle' and ' Creative' : Emerging Russian Social Groups in Language and Culture
Friday 25 - Saturday 26 October 2013
http://www.ed.ac.uk/schools-departments/literatures-languages-cultures/dashkova/research-resources/middle-creative-programme
Since the turn of Millennium, Russia has experienced a period of deep social transformations. One of the key developments is the emergence of the educated urban social cluster engaged in entrepreneurship, knowledge technologies and the creative professions. Loosely defined labels such as ‘creative class’ and ‘educated citizens’ have been coined to refer to this group, along with the use of a more general notion of ‘middle class’. These emergent socio-cultural groups and networks entail shifts in communication codes, repertoires and practices as they actively seek strategies and lifestyles to describe, perform and reflect their newly perceived identities and values, and to distinguish themselves from other parts of society.
As members of these groups are employing various means to negotiate their own belonging, solidarity and identity, outside observers are also searching for adequate linguistic and cultural vocabularies to define, describe, represent and conjure up a stance towards this new social phenomenon. In particular, many cultural industries have developed a fascination with the ‘creative class’ as the representation of its lifestyles, values, agency and other features have become a prominent theme in contemporary Russian literature, cinema, theatre, visual arts and the media, and have shifted the agenda of Russian blogs and social networking sites.
The conference aims to facilitate an interdisciplinary investigation of the linguistic and cultural forms, codes and practices associated with the Russian ‘creative’/‘middle class’. Approaches including socio-cultural linguistics, discourse studies, media and new media studies, cultural anthropology, theatre, film, visual studies and related disciplines are welcome. The conference will focus (but not exclusively) on the following themes:
Conference Room
The Princess Dashkova Russian Centre
14 Buccleuch Place
'Middle' and 'Creative' conference
Friday 25 October9.30-10.00 Registration, coffee
10.00-10.10 Opening word - Lara Ryazanova-Clarke (University of Edinburgh)
10.10-11.10 Keynote talk: Helena Goscilo (Ohio State University)
11.10-12.40 THE NEW SOCIAL REALITY: SEARCHING FOR DEFINITIONS AND ESTABLISHING HIERARCHY
Chair: Ilia Kalinin (St Petersburg University)
Elena Trubina (Ural Federal University). “Сreative class” and its others in the context of uneven development
Victoria Merzlyakova (Russian State University for the Humanities). “I’m ok but who are all these people?” Practices of social representation of the “Ok-class” and its opponents on the Runet
Vera Zvereva (University of Edinburgh). “Around us is bydlo”: demarking social boundaries on the Russian networking sites
1.30-3.30 LINGUISTIC AND CULTURAL MARKERS OF THE MIDDLE CLASS
Chair: Vera Zvereva (University of Edinburgh)
Natalia Azarova (Institute of Linguistics, Russian Academy of Science). Creativity as a word and as a concept in contemporary Russian
Oxana Moroz (Russian State University for the Humanities). Российское мокьюментари как язык репрезентации: о чем мы говорим?
Svetlana Bochaver (Institute of Linguistics, Russian Academy of Sciences). Coherence and Incoherence in Contemporary Russian Poetry
Polina Kliuchnikova (Durham University). “Creative community” or “linguistic misfits”: Translingual practices and transcultural identities of Russian-speaking migrants in the UK
4.00- 5.30 THE MIDDLE CLASS: 'NEW' AND 'OLD' CULTURAL PRACTICES
Chair: Luke March (University of Edinburgh)
Elena Gapova (Western Michigan University). “Creative Class”, Virtual Community and the Urban Culture Buzz
Galina Zvereva (Russian State University for the Humanities). “Us vs Them”: practices of shaping the Russian middle class in social media
Tatiana Venediktova (Moscow State University). “Bourgeois reader” as a Cultural Hero
Saturday 26 October9.00-10.30 REPRESENTATIONS OF THE CREATIVE CLASS
Chair: Aldona Judina (University of Edinburgh)
Anna Kotomina (Russian State University for the Humanities). Multimedia projects for Moscow Circorama and the public show as self-representation of the “creative class”
Galina Shmatova (Russian State University for the Humanities). “Креативный класс” в пространстве театра: образ и стратегия
Yulia Griber (Smolensk State University). Colour representations of Russian “creative class” in urban space
11.00-12.30 THE MIDDLE/CREATIVE CLASS IN THE PROTEST MOVEMENTS
Chair: Victoria Merzlyakova (Russian State University for the Humanities)
Sergey Davydov (Higher School of Economics). Construction of protest activity at the leading Russian TV channels during the electoral period in 2011-2012
Yulia Lukyanova (University of Edinburgh). Politicisation of the identity of the middle class in Russia: a socio-psychological approach
Ekaterina Suverina (Russian State University for the Humanities). Social media in Russian protest: How we try to create common values
12.30-1.15 PRESENTATION OF THE CALVERT FORUM
Jonathan McClory (Calvert 22 Foundation, London). The Calvert Forum: Exploring Russia's creative potential.
|