Margins and marginality: Pakistani state and societies
7-9th May 2010, Rook
Howe, the Lake District
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The state and the margins are mutually imbricated. Recent scholarship has examined the margins of society as ‘the unruly subjects’, ‘the places where you find people who are insufficiently socialised into law’, ‘the spaces, forms and practices through which the state is undone and experienced through the illegibility of its own documents, words and practices’ (Das and Poole 2004:10); the concept of marginality helping to capture the local manifestations of the state in everyday life, in the form of law or bureaucracy to be submitted to or evaded. For 2010, the Pakistan Workshop warmly invites scholars of Pakistan, the Pakistani diaspora and Muslims of South Asia to submit abstracts for papers on the broad theme of marginality, providing an analytical focus on both the oppressive quality of exclusion, and also the generative, self-assertive potential of challenging the social categories that peripheralise people. We would particularly welcome papers examining marginalised regions of Pakistan as well as ethno-nationalist movements within Pakistan. The theme is intended as a guide to help participants select aspects of their research for presentation, but is not intended to exclude people whose interest does not coincide with the theme.
The Pakistan Workshop was founded to bring together anthropologists and sociologists whose research involved Pakistan, the Pakistani diaspora and South Asian Islam. However, this workshop has also attracted scholars and researchers from a broad range of disciplines including historians, political scientists, economists and applied social scientists. The Workshop is a joint platform for established and new scholars, providing an opportunity to get acquainted with each other to inspire people working in common fields of interest. We particularly welcome postgraduates from UK and abroad who are working in relevant areas and wish to receive friendly feedback from our group of academics.
This workshop is therefore normally kept small and intimate with a group of 25 or less people. The venue, Rook How, is one of the oldest Quaker Meeting Houses in Britain and is an important location in the Quaker world. The Rook How offers dormitory style sleeping arrangements which are comfortable and affordable. For those who prefer B&B accommodation, there are several nice places around the area which can only be accessed if they have their own car. The total cost of the Workshop will be £65-70 approximately for those staying at the Rook How (which includes Workshop registration, reception, breakfasts, lunches, teas and coffees).
The deadline for abstracts is January 15, 2010, after which the conference organisers will make a selection and inform the participants of their decision. The finished papers would be required two weeks before the workshop, so they can be pre-circulated to all of the participants.
You can register by paying £30 online at http://psg.anthropology.ac.uk/ or send a cheque for £30 payable to ‘Pakistan Workshop’ to
Mwenza Blell
Department of Anthropology
Durham University
Dawson Building,
South Road,
Durham,
DH1 3LE