Dear All,
We are happy to announce that the conference “Anthropology of the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly: Examples from the Anthropology of Christianity and its Others” will take place at Villa Hatt, Seminarraum, Freudenbergstrasse 112, 8044 Zürich on September 6-8, 2019. The conference starts with a keynote by Prof. Joel Robbins from the University of Cambridge on July 6, 5pm at Villa Hatt.
Since its beginning, anthropology has been trading in alterity, invested in studying phenomena that are typically considered to be—to some extent—‘other’ to anthropologists themselves; Geertz famously described anthropologists as ‘merchants of astonishment‘ (1984: 275). This focus, however, has arguably been on certain kinds of alterity, but not on others. Robbins (2013) argued that anthropology’s focus has shifted from the ‘savage slot’ (Trouillot 2003) to the ‘suffering slot’. Harding suggested to make those who appear to be ‘repugnant cultural “others”’ anthropological objects of inquiry in their own right, while Joel Robbins proposed an ‘anthropology of the good’. Against this backdrop the goal of this conference is to bring together scholars studying different Atheist, Humanist, Nonreligious and Christian groups and to ask, in which ways do they organise their personal and collective lives in order to foster what they think of as good? How do we describe their understanding of ‘the good? How do we deal with negative responses to these notions of ‘the good’, including discomfort, mockery or repulsion? Does Anthropology in its self-understanding have, as stated by Bialecki (2008) and others, a particular antagonistic relationship with certain groups? More generally: Who are repugnant cultural “others” (& for whom) in contemporary anthropology?
Program conference
Day Time Content 16.00 Registration at Villa Hatt 17.00 Welcome 17.10 Keynote by Joel Robbins:
On the Prospects for a Comparative Study of the Good: Beyond the Bad and Ugly in Anthropological Relativism 19.00 Dinner at Restaurant Bistro Rigiblick 7. Sept. 2019
09.00 – 09.15 Welcome & Introduction to Conference 09.15 – 10.15 Johannes Quack:
Repugnant Others in Anthropology: Rationalists, Missionaries and Other “Thick Social Types” 10.15 – 11.15 John Hagström:
The problem of the repugnant atheist: notes on the immoral stereotype of disbelief, delicious profanation, and the pleasure of provocation 11.15 – 11.45 Coffee Break 11.45– 12.45 Matthew Engelke:
Secular Deaths (Good and Bad) 12.45 – 14.00 Lunch at Villa Hatt 14.00 – 15.00 Stefan Binder:
On the Negativity of Atheism. Or, why does lived Secularity bore Anthropologists? 15.00 – 16.00 Ingie Hovland:
What Did Lutheran Colonial Mission Feminists Want? Toward a Composite Concept of Value Work in the Anthropology of Christianity 16.00 – 16.30 Coffee Break 16.30 – 17.30 Simon Coleman:
Ethnography, Epistemology, and the ‘Anthropology Slot’: Reflections on the Surprisingly Unrepugnant Other 17.30 – 19.00 Walk at Züri-Berg 19.00 Dinner at Alter Löwe 8. Sept. 2019 09.15 – 10.15 Jon Bialecki:
There is no transitive law on the road to Liberty University 10.15 – 11.15 Joe Webster:
Incestuous Love, Hermetically Sealed Hate, and the Return of the Old Firm 11.15– 11.45 Coffee Break 11.45 – 12.45 Maria Hughes:
Missionaries’ ethical navigation. Balancing the charge of doing something ‘ugly’ and the desire to be recognized for doing something ‘good’ 12.45 – 14.00 Lunch von Villa Hatt 14.00 – 15.00 Laurie Occhipinti:
Doing good, being good: Service missions and the creation of a moral self 15.00 – 16.00 Final discussion 16.00 – 16.30 Coffee Break + End
All those interested in the conference and/or the Keynote please register with Rivana Cerullo [log in to unmask] by August 15.
Costs: the registration fee per day per Person is 60 CHF (includes lunch and coffee breaks), for students attendance is free of charge. The contribution for joining one of the dinners (September 6th or 7th) is 40 CHF, 20 CHF for students. There is no charge for the keynote. However, spaces are limited so registration is necessary.
The fee will be paid in cash at the registration desk at the conference.
Circulation among interested parties is greatly appreciated.
Kind regards
Johannes Quack, Maria Hughes and Rivana Cerullo
University of Zürich
ISEK - Department of Social Anthropology and Cultural Studies
Andreasstrasse 15
8050 Zürich
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