Conference to Examine Emotions and Their Role in Public Sphere, Oct. 3-4

Event: Up-and-coming scholars from colleges and universities across the country will convene on The University of Texas at Austin campus to present their research on why some expressions of emotion are valued in the public sphere and why others are not — and the impact this has on social movements and politics.

The “New Agendas: Political Emotions” conference features Lauren Berlant, George M. Pullman Professor at the University of Chicago, delivering the keynote address, “After the Good Life: The Impasse: Human Resources, Time Out, and the Precarious Present.” This event is free and open to the public.

When: Oct. 3-4, 2008

Oct. 3, 9 a.m.-5 p.m.

Oct. 4, 9 a.m.-5 p.m.

Where: College of Communication, LBJ room, CMA 5.160. Maps of The University of Texas at Austin campus are available at http://www.utexas.edu/maps/.

Background: In recent years, scholars of culture have been increasingly interested in how our culture teaches us about emotions and what’s appropriate and when. In this working conference, scholars will explore the question: “What contributions can the study of discourses, rhetoric, or framing of emotion contribute to understanding the public sphere, civil society, and the political?”

“Political Emotions” is the fifth in a series of 10 “New Agendas” conferences sponsored by the College of Communication. Each conference will culminate in a volume of research edited by College of Communication faculty members and published by Lawrence Erlbaum/Taylor & Francis Publishers.

“New Agendas: Political Emotions” is sponsored by the College of Communication with additional support from the University of Texas Public Feelings Research Group, the Departments of English and Art and Art History, and the William P. Hobby Centennial Professorship.

For a more detailed conference schedule and a list of presenters, please visit: http://rtf.utexas.edu/politicalemotions

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Contact:
Janet Staiger
Department of Radio-Television-Film
512-471-6653