- Colonialism and Utopia
Colonisation did not only mean economic expansion, but also “civilising” other parts of the world. In many cases, at the end of this process, an idealised or utopic society was to be created. In this workshop, we will have a look at various concepts of Utopia that can be found in the history of European expansion, the founding of colonies, and the spreading of European culture, religion, and “civilisation”.
While most elements described above belong to European overseas expansion, an open approach towards colonialism is encouraged, allowing for papers which could deal with internal colonisation of large empire states, or with Socialist concepts of building up perfect society. - Concepts of human beings – utopia and dystopia
Brave and heroic warriors in antiquity, the pious nobleman in middle-ages or the hard-working proletarian in modern state socialism – ideals of perfect human beings can be found throughout all periods of history. In this workshop, we are going to discuss whether and to what extent these ideals were utopian. Just as interesting are supposedly dystopian pictures of mankind in prophecies or retrospect. In both cases we will discuss which developments in society and economy advantaged these wishes on the one hand and fears on the other hand. - Dystopia in Speculative Fiction
Throughout its history, speculative fiction has mused on the implications of man-made social dystopias. Usually, these musings cannot be discarded as mere phantastic speculations of a future unknown, but must be considered as extrapolations of the fears and sorrows at the time of the work’s creation. As such, they offer a vast richness for Historians with an interest in cultural history. Classics like George Orwell’s “1984″ are not only a plea for Human Rights, but also work as a time capsule in which the “doom quality” of current shiftings (e.g. the rise of new technologies or media) is discussed in the most emblematic way.
In this workshop, we want to discuss works of speculative dystopian fiction in its various forms (literature, film, comics) and genres (science fiction, horror, drama, post-apocalypse etc.) and their relation to their own time and public discourse. - Eunomia – Utopian states and societies
Utopias of state and society in literary classics are famous and frequently discussed. In this workshop, the main focus will lie on political convictions about the right form of government and society, whether they once counted as utopias or, by what history teaches us, still can be considered as unreachable ideals. The opposite of the ideal state, dystopias, are just as welcome to be discussed here! - Utopia in Propaganda
Utopias or dystopias can be used as a mean in propaganda in order to convince the masses of one’s political views.
In other cases, when after in decisive moments (turning points such as wars and revolutions) a group is put into power that is in favor of a certain utopia, they are often confronted with a problematic situation: they have to adjust their utopian idea to reality and thus adjust their propaganda. This workshop will emphasize on how propagdanda and utopia or dystopia inflict eachother.
9th Oct, 2010