ESSE Conference, Istanbul 4-8 September 2012 Post-9/11 Cultures of Terror in South-East Asian Literature and Film
The shockwave of 9/11 has generated a wealth of critical literature as well
as its own literary canon with the emergence of the subgenre of terror
fiction Liter(r)ature as writers recreated or reconstructed the
terrorist attacks directly or obliquely in their fiction.
However, the first edition of our conference held at the University of
Turin, established that Terror is asymmetrical and complex, not monolithic
as the GWOT implies with its Manichean binaries. The United States does not
have a monopoly of Terror and the US and Euro-centric debates about 9/11
which predominantly focus on security and international relations issues
tend to overlook the abuses of State Terror in connection with the legacies
of colonialism, decolonization and the Cold War.
The second edition of Cultures of Terror to be held within ESSE 2012 at the
Bogazici University of Istanbul from 4th to 8th September 2012 seeks to
explore the fictional representation of State oppression and brutalization
of the most vulnerable, whether in the name of national security or as a
result of collateral damage to domestic or foreign military operations. We
welcome papers that think through and beyond the predominant rhetorics and
narratives of Terror and which address violent forms of postcolonial
sovereignty, or ethnically-motivated, religion-based or caste-related
violence in modern South Asia.
We invite 15-minute long contributions focusing on film and fiction that
responds to the conflicts in Afghanistan, Pakistans tribal areas, Kashmir,
Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.
We are also convening a round table on the same issues and invite/welcome
guest speakers to participate in a wide-ranging debate.
Procedure for submitting paper proposals:
Colleagues wishing to participate in the Seminar or round table are invited
to submit a 250-300-word abstract and a brief bio to the three convenors
before 11th February 2012. We will notify the participants of acceptance of
their proposals by 29th February 2012.
Dr Stephen Morton, University of Southampton: S.C.Morton@soton.ac.uk
Dr Veronica Thompson, University of Athabasca: thompson@athabascau.ca
Dr Pascal Zinck, University of Lille:
cap.zinck@wanadoo.fr
All the information concerning the ESSE-11 Conference in Istanbul can be
found on the Conference website http://www.esse2012.org
