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Call for Papers Theme: Critical Emancipations Type: International Conference Institution: Higher Institute of Philosophy, KU Leuven Location: Leuven (Belgium) Date: 12.–13.5.2023 Deadline: 8.1.2023 __________________________________________________ The broad tradition of critical theory is historically, politically and theoretically committed to emancipation. But the modern notion of emancipation is also a contested concept. This is already apparent in Marx’s attempts to provide an alternative theory of emancipation to the liberal (Hägglund 2019) and the classical republican versions (Roberts 2018). Now that capitalism is back on the agenda (Fraser & Jaeggi 2018) and presenting new challenges in the form of an emerging platform economy (Muldoon 2022), crises of care and the climate (Fraser 2022) and ubiquitous economic precarity (Azmanova 2020), it is time reconsider both the nature and potential of this concept. Even though capitalism pervades all spheres of social life, it does not do so in univocal or homogenizing ways and neither is it the sole determining influence. It is thus unclear whether emancipation can carry the same meaning in, for instance, the sphere of production, surrounding migrant rights or in struggles over reproductive justice. A self-reflective tradition of critical theory should therefore take into account radical critiques of the Marxist idea of emancipation. Postcolonial scholars, for instance, criticize the philosophy of history present in Eurocentric notions of emancipation (Allen 2015) and show that anti-colonial struggles produced their own ideas of emancipation (Coulthard 2014; Getachew 2016). Feminists and queer critical theorists, to give another example, contest masculine ideas of emancipation (Von Redecker 2018) and encourage us to question the central place of waged labor in the movement for social emancipation (Weeks 2011; Bhattacharya 2017). Finally, this conference also wants to consider two fundamental challenges to the notion of emancipation. First and foremost, the irreparable damages caused by climate change in differential ways across the globe force us to question whether the idea of emancipation remains adequate for our times. To what extent were the achievements of emancipation in ‘developed countries’ dependent on the exploitation of nature (Mitchell 2011)? Which role can emancipation still play in climate struggles? And if not emancipation, how can we conceptualize political interventions from a distinctly critical theoretical perspective? Second, it also remains important to examine the ‘dialectic of emancipation’: the process through which emancipation turns into its opposite. How can we explain or prevent that emancipatory struggles end up constituting exclusionary regimes or committing acts of cruelty (Balibar 2014; 2015)? Possible research topics include: - Reconstructions of Marx’s theory and concept of emancipation: e.g. the critique of juridical and political emancipation; the relation between the concept of emancipation and concepts like alienation, exploitation, reification or freedom; comparisons with precursors and contemporaries of Marx - The concept of emancipation in the broad critical theoretical tradition: e.g. the concept of emancipation in the Frankfurt School; French phenomenological or (post-)structuralist Marxism; the Budapest School; (Post-)Operaismo; etc. - The concept of emancipation in feminist, postcolonial or black radical traditions: feminist, queer, postcolonial or black radical reformulations of the concept of emancipation (e.g. Fanon, Federici, Robinson); anti-colonial or indigenous struggles and the reconfiguration of Marxist ideas of emancipation; the relation and conflicts between difference and universalism in the concept of emancipation - Contemporary transformations and political intervention: emancipatory politics in light of ecological, democratic, and economic crises; contemporary theories of migration and emancipation; emancipation in the age of digital transformations - Emancipation and political repertoires: the relation between emancipation and different political strategies and tactics (e.g. strikes, occupations, riots, disobedience); organizational forms and emancipation; emancipation and violent/non-violent resistance within the Marxist tradition Keynote speakers - Martin Hägglund (Yale University) - Eva von Redecker (University of Verona; Humboldt University of Berlin) - William Clare Roberts (McGill University) Organizational details If you are interested in participating in this conference, please submit an anonymized abstract for 20 min presentations (max. 500 words), along with an email including your name, title, and affiliation to: criticalemancipati...@kuleuven.be Deadline for abstract submissions: 8 January 2023 If accepted, you are invited to develop your abstract into a full paper. We also encourage junior scholars and scholars from underprivileged backgrounds to apply. __________________________________________________ InterPhil List Administration: https://interphil.polylog.org InterPhil List Archive: https://www.mail-archive.com/interphil@list.polylog.org/ __________________________________________________
