Peter Carey Australian Literature

Peter Carey

Australian Literature

Carey, Peter (1943- ), Australian novelist and short-story writer, known for his vivid stories of contemporary life, which combine surreal, grotesque, and humorous elements. Carey’s first published work, a collection of short stories, The Fat Man in History (1974), was well received and established him as one of Australia’s important contemporary writers and literary innovators. The series of novels that followed confirmed his reputation and consolidated his style, a mixture of realism and fantasy that has been compared to the work of American novelist Kurt Vonnegut, Jr., Colombian novelist Gabriel García Márquez, and Argentine writer Jorge Luis Borges. Bliss (1981), Carey’s first novel, is the story of an advertising executive who sees his life and the world around him differently after a near-fatal heart attack. Bliss was made into a motion picture in 1985, with a screenplay by Carey.

Among Carey’s other novels are Illywhacker (1985), a work of epic scope about a 139-year-old conman, and Oscar and Lucinda (1988), a love story set in the 19th century, which won Britain’s highest literary award, the Booker Prize. His novel The Tax Inspector (1991) describes the unusual investigation of the Catchprice family by a tax inspector who is eight months pregnant. The Unusual Life of Tristam Smith (1994) tells the story of a boy’s search for his father’s identity while struggling to come to terms with a birth defect. The novel Jack Maggs (1998) is an imaginative reworking of Great Expectations (1860-1861) by English writer Charles Dickens. Carey’s fiction also includes War Crimes (1979), a second collection of short stories, and The Big Bazoohley (1995), a novel of fantasy for children. In 2001 Carey won his second Booker Prize, this one for the novel True History of the Kelly Gang, a fictional account of the life of famed Australian outlaw Ned Kelly. Carey became just the second writer to win the Booker Prize twice (South African author J. M. Coetzee was the first).

Janet Frame (1924-2004) Australian Literature

Janet Frame (1924-2004)

Australian Literature

Frame, Janet (1924-2004), New Zealand novelist and short-story writer. Extremely lonely through her time at the University of Otago teacher-training college, Frame attempted suicide when she was faced with the prospect of a lifetime teaching, and was committed to a mental institution. Misdiagnosed as a schizophrenic, she was caught up in a cycle of dehumanizing treatments. In hospital, she read the classics voraciously and started to write. She only avoided serious psychosurgery because her first collection of stories, The Lagoon: Stories (1951), won the Hubert Church prose award. Frank Sargeson, himself an influential author in New Zealand, let Frame stay in his shed to complete her first novel, Owls Do Cry (1957). This novel explores the themes of the worth of an individual and the ambiguous border between sanity and madness. Frame sees a society that is unable to cope with disorder, irrationality, and madness as incomplete and inadequate. She has now written 11 novels, including Faces in the Water (1961), The Rainbirds (1968), Living in the Maniototo (1979), and The Carpathians, which won the Commonwealth Writers Prize in 1989; four collections of short stories and sketches, a volume of poetry, The Pocket Mirror (1967), and a children's book, Mona Minim and the Smell of the Sun (1969). However it was the publication of Frame's three-volume Autobiography (1989), comprising To the Is-land (1982; James Wattie Book of the Year Award, 1983), An Angel at My Table (1984; New Zealand Literature Award for Non-Fiction, 1984), and The Envoy from Mirror City (1985), and its subsequent translation into an award-winning film (An Angel at My Table, 1990; adapted by Laura Jones, and directed by Jane Campion), that brought her writing a popular audience to match her critical reputation. Frame's novels combine brutal self-honesty with literary experimentation, using interior monologue and elaborately developed symbolism to parallel her personal experience of insecurity with the isolation of those who feel they have no place in the “normal” world. In 1983, Janet Frame was awarded the CBE.

Sylvia Ashton-Warner (1905-84) Australian Literature

Sylvia Ashton-Warner (1905-84)

Australian Literature

New Zealand teacher and writer. She started writing while teaching Maori youngsters, the descendants of the original Polynesian inhabitants. Her early novels, Spinster (1958) and Incense to Idols (1960), bordered on the flamboyant, but the forceful, sensitive women portrayed in her novels attracted many readers. She received worldwide recognition with Teacher (1963), an account of her innovative teaching methods. After teaching in the U.S., she wrote Spearpoint, “Teacher” in America (1972), a critical commentary on television-influenced educational developments in the United States.

Keri Hulme Australian Literature

Keri Hulme

Australian Literature

New Zealand novelist, poet, and short-story writer, best known for her first novel, The Bone People (1983). The work won the Booker Prize, the United Kingdom's most prestigious literary award, in 1985, as well as New Zealand's Pegasus Prize for Maori Literature, in 1984.Hulme, of English, Scottish, and Maori (the original peoples of New Zealand) ancestry, was born in Christchurch and educated at Canterbury University. She later worked as a tobacco picker, pharmacist's assistant, and postwoman. Her first published work was a poetry collection entitled The Silence Between: Moeraki Conversations (1982). Hulme has developed a writing style and vocabulary that are distinctly of New Zealand, even though they draw on the traditions of English, Irish, and American Literature. Her writing is often reliant on dream imagery and myth. Her other works include the novella Lost Possessions (1985), the short-story collection The Windeater/Te Kaihau (1986), and a second collection of poetry, Shards (1992).

Witi Ihimaera Australian Literature

Witi Ihimaera

Australian Literature

A New Zealand writer, best known for his novels and short stories, which portray the Maori people and their customs, as well as their constant struggle to maintain their community against often destructive European forces. His works were written in English, but he used Maori words and phrases in the narrative to give a sense of Maori culture.His first collection of short stories, Pounamu Pounamu (Jade), was published in 1974. It and two novels—Tangi (Mourning, 1973), on the grief of a son for his father, and Whanau (Extended Family, 1974)— combined to form a trilogy on rural life. The New Net Goes Fishing (1977), however, is a collection of short stories set in the city. Ihimaera was long occupied with his work as a professional diplomat, and it was not until 1986 that he published a longer novel, The Matriarch, which deals with the wars between the Maori and the European colonists in New Zealand between 1860 and 1872. The book The Whale Rider (1987) marked a return to his earlier, simpler style. In 1994 Bulibasha, a seriocomic tale of two sheep-shearing families in conflict near Gisborne, was published. In 1995 it was followed by Nights in the Garden of Spain, a novel concerning issues of homosexuality. Ihimaera was also the editor of Into the World Of Light (1978), a collection of contemporary Maori writing.

ICSET 2015: XI International Conference on Science, Engineering & Technology

ICSET 2015: XI International Conference on Science, Engineering & TechnologyICSET November 2015School of Social Sciences & LanguagesVIT University, Vellore-632014

Dear Sir / Madam,

 

 

Greetings from VIT University, Vellore!

 

We invite you to be part of the exciting ICSET Conference, Nov’2015.

 

It is irrefutable that the world we live in has developed much and has an extensive effect on our general public and assembled environment. Who could have speculated the web's ascent, the cloud and a mobile in each pocket? Be that as it may, what would be the next best step? What will the future offer? How are we going to utilize the rising advancements in the fields of Science, Engineering and Technology globally? In what perspective would we be able to apply the most recent improvements in an important manner to upgrade our lives, the way we live, our manufactured surroundings and our general public? 

 

 

ICSET 2015 will investigate the most recent insights and improvements on these inquiries and you can go along with us!

 

ICSET 2015: XI International Conference on Science, Engineering & Technology is the premier interdisciplinary forum for the presentation of new advances and research results in the fields of SCIENCE, ENGINEERING, TECHNOLOGY AND HUMANITIES. The gathering will unite scholars and researchers in various domains of interest from around the globe. The organising committee invites all Institutes, Universities and Industries to send in the latest developments in their respective fields in the form of paper presentations or poster presentations. For more details about the conference, kindly see the attached flyer.

 

 

Please encourage your Faculty Members, Students (both Graduate and Post Graduate - irrespective whether they are 1^st Year or Final Year -representing any Major/Discipline) and Research Scholars to participate and present their innovative ideas in form of Paper Presentation or Poster Presentation.

 

Looking forward to welcoming you at ICSET Nov’ 2015.

 

Thank You

 

Organizing Committee

ICSET November 2015

School of Social Sciences & Languages

VIT University, Vellore-632014

 

 

Quick link for Paper upload and online registration  

https://academics.vit.ac.in/online_application/conference/apply.asp

 

IMPORTANT DATES

Full Paper/Abstract submissions  (Last Date) October 22, 2015 Notification of acceptance October 25, 2015 Authors' registration October 30, 2015 Conference Dates November 3 - 4, 2015     Ø Participants are kindly requested to send their full papers ON OR BEFORE OCTOBER 20, 2015, so as to avoid last minute rush and also enable the organizers to select the best paper and forward it Scopus Indexed Journal.

 

Dr. N.S. Vishnu Priya,
Assistant Professor(Senior) of English,

VIT University,

Vellore

OBEDIENCE PAYS NO COST BUT ACQUIRES EVERYTHING

3-Day Workshop on Language Technology and Cognitive Science (LTCS-2016)

3-Day Workshop on Language Technology and Cognitive Science (LTCS-2016)
Linguistic Research Unit, Indian Statistical Institute, Kolkata
10-12 February 2016  

Third International Conference on Language, Literature and Society 2016

Third International Conference on Language, Literature and Society 201618-19 January, 2016 , Bangkok, Thailand

          

Ithaca College, New York, USA , International Center for Research & Development, Sri Lanka, JK University, India & Unique Conferences Canada  are proud to announce the Third  International Conference on  Languages, Literature and Society (LLS2016) which  will  be held from 18-19 January, 2016, Bangkok Thailand. We cordially invite you to participate in this premier event in South –East Asia.

Join  the  premier  knowledge building event in  Languages   in Asia. 

Languages 2016  is an interactive platform to connect and reconnect colleagues around the world. You can meet 2013, 2015 participants as well as new participants in our conferences. Languages2016  is the premier knowledge building event and the largest gathering in Language community in  the Global South.

BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS &  COLLABORATE

Languages 2016is your place for  building relationships with others, Learn about best practices and innovations  and  establish  network with future collaborators.

ENJOY GREAT FOOD , EXPLORE  EXOTIC THAILAND &  ENJOY 

ENHANCE YOUR KNOWLEDGE & PRACTICE

Languages 2016 will give you the opportunity to upgrade your knowledge through greater interaction with experts in the field.  You not only learn and enhance your knowledge but you will be empowered to practice what your learnt.

Listen to  latest research findings,  present your work  before a global audience  , network, build new relationships, join  the international language community and experience and  explore Bangkok the most vibrant and exotic city in Asia.

 Why join  Languages 2016

• Global audience
• Speakers from more than 50 countries
• 02 Day conference program
• Post conference free One day   tour
• Publication of your  papers with ISBN number & online
• Best awards for PhD students

WHO SHOULD PARTICIPATE

Researchers 
Academics 
Authors
Bloggers
Teachers 
PhD students
Translators
Interpreters 
Corporate communicators

and any other who is interested to join this conference ……

Publication of Papers 
All accepted papers will be peer reviewed by members of the program committee and will be published in the edited conference proceedings with ISBN number (ONLINE)

Certificate of Presentation 
A certificate of presentation will be awarded to all registered participants from the joint partners of the conference.

Certificate of participation 
A certificate of participation will be awarded to all registered listeners/observers

For more information visit http://www.languages3000.com/

International Conference English Studies: The Evolving Paradigms of Employability and Power 2016

International Conference
English Studies: The Evolving Paradigms of Employability and Power
Amity School of Languages,
Amity University Lucknow Campus India

Amity School of Languages welcomes delegates, scholars and students to its third International Conference on the 

18th & 19th February, 2016

Title: English Studies: The Evolving Paradigms of Employability and Power

Amity School of Languages

 Amity University, Lucknow Campus 

_________________________________ 

Organizes 

3 rd International Conference 

0n 

English Studies: The Evolving Paradigms of Employability and Power 

18 - 19 February, 2016

 Amity University, 

Uttar Pradesh, Lucknow Campus

Concept Note

‘English Studies: The Evolving Paradigms of Employability and Power’ 

The evolving paradigms in the discourse of the invariably encompassing character and the negotiable tendencies inherent in the English language call for a grave and a profound deliberation on its social and economic position vis-a-vis native languages in multilingual countries. It is in these countries that English has emerged not only as a tassel to knit together multi lingual identities into a uniform whole but also as a catalyst influencing Employability and Job-worthiness in people. The International Conference on „English Studies: The Evolving Paradigms of Employability and Power shall be an endeavor to accommodate academic proclivities to achieve excellence in research and pedagogical exploration in terms of re-inventing, re-appraising, re-assuring and re-constructing English texts (ancient, modern , and contemporary) in conformity with and towards the postulations of various critical theories in language and literary studies to highlight in the broader analysis the presentness and relevance of English in the world today. 

The ascendance and proliferation of language across the socio-cultural backdrops and ethnicities that began in the late 15th century with the influence of the British empire having established itself as economically the most privileged factor determining and defining the lives of its subjects, Modern English spread with immense rapidity around the world from the 17th to mid-20th centuries by divers media such as newspapers, books, the telegraph, the telephone, phonograph records, radio, satellite television, and most recently the Internet. English has since become the leading language of international discourse and the lingua franca in professional contexts such as science, advertising, management and international-law. The numbers of English speakers far outnumber those of other languages: a staggering 600 to 700 million people speak it as a foreign language besides 360 to 400 million native speakers.

In an attempt to define the present disciplinary areas of English Studies and to define their scope in terms of Literature, Language and Communication, it is of consequence that content and style are characterized by a significant merger of what G.N Devy calls the „marga‟, or national-cultural features and the strain of existentialism which is characteristic of international writing. 

The changing contours of the discourse on the position and the incomparable ascendency of the English language and its deep roots that have both infiltrated and enriched the grounds of other tongues, cultures and idioms have shifted the thrust of the discourse itself from the study of the grand, old British canon to that of the divers varieties of „World Englishes‟, which denote the emergence of localized or indigenous varieties of English that have developed and continue to evolve, taking jargons and words of the native language and adopting local flavors. What is most relevant in this study is that English transgresses political frontiers, extends beyond the horizons of limitations and has unanimously been accepted as „the‟ language of placement and power. 

Like all other languages English too provides its users a medium for easy communication of ideas. The English language, one of the great legacies of the British Raj, continues to be an integral part of the Indian academic curriculum, connecting it to the world at large. A force of cohesion in higher education, media, administration, the corporate world, government organizations, public/private ventures, English has paved the way for cross-national employability in Indian students in the globalised world. The meticulous inculcation of English language skills in pupils from early childhood has facilitated Indians into a greater presence internationally. 

The inferior and underdeveloped skills in English serve as a severe handicap for job-seekers in the play of challenge for rewards of placement, with onlookers and trend setters looking at low skills in English as the reasons for the job-seekers‟ inability to negotiate with the unforeseen and unpredictable demands of a globalised world. Technically qualified professionals with underdeveloped skills in English, therefore, lack employment opportunities. 

Hiring companies reject them as „half baked‟, pointing out that they are unable to meet the job requirements. Scholars the world over have debated on methodologies of English language teaching, earnestly reinventing them from rote-centric to play way methods to ICT to storytelling to all possible imaginative creativities. 

The Janus approach in ELT has found admirers who argue cogently that teaching of language through literature evolves skills in critical thinking, bringing home life/survival/soft skill, catharsis, moral/social lessons and a criticism of life at large. Coming to works of literature, Maxim Gorky‟s unambiguous statement clinches the debate regarding the relevance of literature and literary presentations in language teaching: “Each book was a rung in my ascent from the brutish to the human, towards an understanding of a better life and a thirst after that life”. 

An in-depth mastery of language through the study of literature along with perfected skills in communication leads to higher emoluments in powerful positions. The raison d'être for this International Conference on „„English Studies: The Evolving Paradigms of Employability and Power‟, is to delve into the ground breaking research on the ever expanding horizon of English Teaching and map the paradigmatic shifts. 

Such efforts will further enable us to ideate on academic research in the methodologies scholars propose towards more efficacious methods of creating linguistic abilities (to both the native and the foreign learners of the English language) but may also transform themselves into sustainable day to day classroom practices facilitating the Teacher trainer to revisit and rejuvenate pedagogy, whereby they may produce more thorough, confident and informed ESL learners; oil the teacher taught machinery to address and redress the known and the hitherto unforeseen challenges. 

When money and power seize to be the only sustaining factors in one‟s life, the ultimate goal of self-realization transcends this placement-power nexus. From amidst these materialistic pursuits comes the epiphanic journey of self-actualization: 

I celebrate myself, and sing myself,And what I assume you shall assume, For every atom belonging to me as good belongs to you -Walt Whitman 

The Conference would invite Scholarly papers and deliberations on the following areas: 

1. Literature of Power: Theory in Practices 

2. New Literatures in English: The Emerging Trends. 

3. English Studies and Beyond (Theatre, Media, Film Studies, Social Sciences, etc.) 

4. Great Writers 

5. Translation Studies 

6. Cultural studies 

7. English as a Language of Power: From “ English” to “World englishes” 

8. Classroom Conduct of English for Especial Purposes 

9. Leadership Traits embedded in Communication 

10. Soft Skills to Scale Professional Heights 

Highlights of the Conference: 

Plenary Sessions by experts from Japan, USA, UK and India Paper Reading, Presentation, Poster Presentation Workshop Cultural Evening 

Who Should Participate? 

Teachers, Researchers, Creative writers, Professionals and PG, UG Students. 

Call for Papers: Inviting abstracts for Paper presentations/ and proposals for Oral presentations dealing with the themes of the Conference. Complete Registration Forms, with Abstracts and Full Papers, adhering to the important dates mentioned below, should be emailed to mkgaurav@lko.amity.edu and CC to mjohri@amity.edu 

Note: Selected papers will be published in the Conference proceedings with ISBN No. Instruction for the Presenters: 

Abstract length should not exceed 500 words. Full Paper length should not exceed 2000 words. Both, the Abstract and the Full Paper are to be preceded by a 50 words note of the author. 

Full Papers must adhere to the MLA style for Documentation. 

Duration of the Programme: Two-days Dates: Thursday & Friday, 18-19th February, 2016 Time: 09.00 AM onwards Venue: Auditorium Block, Amity University, Lucknow Campus Abstract and Paper Formatting Details: Font Style - Times New Roman Font Size - Text 12 point, Title 14 point, Sub-headings 14 point and Author Note 10 point Alignment - Title and Author Note should be Center Aligned, Subheadings should be Left Aligned and Complete Text should be justified. 

Deadlines to Remember: Submission of Abstract with completed Registration Form: November 30, 2015 Acceptance of Abstract: December 05, 2015 

Submission of Full Paper: December 30, 2015 

On Spot Registration: February 18, 2016 (09AM-11AM) 

Registration Fee: A) Early Bird Registration (Before November 30, 2015)

 Indian Delegates: 1000/- (INR) Foreign Delegates: $ 70 (USD) 

Research Scholars: 800/- (INR) PG & UG students: 300/- 

B) On Time Registration (From November 30, 2015 to February 17, 2016) Indian Delegates: 1500/- (INR) Foreign Delegates: $ 80 (USD) Research Scholars: 1000/- (INR) PG & UG students: 400/- 

C) On Spot Registration (February 18, 2016) Indian Delegates: 2000/- (INR) Research Scholars: 1200/- (INR) Foreign Delegates: $ 100 (USD) PG & UG students: 500/- 

Mode of Payment: Registration fee is to be made by Demand Draft drawn on any Nationalized Bank in favour of “Amity University Uttar Pradesh” payable at Lucknow. OR Delegates can directly deposit payment in under mentioned: 

Bank Name: Axis Bank Limited 

Address: Lucknow Branch, 25B, Ashok Marg, Sikander Bagh Chauraha, Lucknow-226001 

Account No.: 053010100284066 

Type of Account: Saving Account 

IFS Code: UTIB0000053 

MICR Code: 226211002 

Note: In case of joint authorship, the second author must also register for participation in the conference Registration Fee includes two complimentary lunches (February 18 & 19, 2016), two refreshments (February 18 & 19, 2016) 

All registered participants will get a conference kit, a certificate of participation/presentation and conference souvenir 

Travel and Accommodation 

How to Reach 

By Air The Amausi Airport at Lucknow is well connected with all metropolitan cities. Prepaid taxies are available at the Airport. 

By Train Lucknow is a major junction of the Northern Indian Railway and is wellconnected with all major cities in the country. 

By Road Lucknow is intersected by various National Highways. Bus services are readily available from all major cities to Lucknow. 

Accommodation We extend assistance in arranging accommodation at the University campus/hostels. Limited accommodation on a sharing basis may be arranged. Guest Houses and Hotels are located within a radius of five kilometers of the campus. It can be booked on payment; on prior request not later than February 10, 2016. 

Conference Committee Patron 

Mr. Aseem K. Chauhan 

Chairman 

Maj. Gen. K. K. Ohri, 

AVSM Convener 

Prof. Dr. Kum Kum Ray 

Professor & Director (Email: kkray@lko.amity.edu) 

Secretary: 

Prof (Dr.) Satyarth Prakash Tripathi (sptripathi@lko.amity.edu) 

Secretary Finance: 

Dr. Satendra Kumar Mishra (skmishra2@lko.amity.edu) 

Office bearers Publications: Dr. Manjari Johri (mjohri@amity.edu) 

Office bearers Logistics: Dr Geetanjali Joshi Mishra (gjmishra@lko.amity.edu) 

Office bearers Communication: 

Dr. Manish Kumar Gaurav Contact No: +91-8874966396 E-mail: mkgaurav@lko.amity.edu 

International Conference English Studies: 

The Evolving Paradigms of Employability and Power 18 – 19th February, 2016 

Amity School of Languages, Amity University, Lucknow Campus 

Registration Form Name.................................................................................................................. Designation........................................................................................................ 

Category: Student Research Scholar Industry Delegate University/Institute Delegate Organization....................................................................................................... MailingAddress................................................................................................... 

Telephone .............................. Fax ....................................................... 

Email ............................................................................... Mobile .................................................. 

Title of Paper: .......................................................................................................................... .................................................................................................................. Author(s)............................................................................................................ PresentingAuthor................................................................................................ AccompanyingPerson(s)...................................................................................... 

Arrival Date ......................................... Arrival Time......................... 

Departure Date ..................................... Departure Time...................... 

Accommodation Required (No. of Days and Nights) ............................................................................ Registration Fee Details DD No. and Date .......................................................................................................................... 

Online Payment Receipt No. and Date................................................................................................ Amount(Rs)........................................................................................................ Bank..................................................................................................................

International Conference on Intimacy and Belonging in Contemporary India 2016

International Conference on

Intimacy and Belonging in Contemporary India
4-6 April, 2016

Seminar Hall, Rashtrapati Niwas, Shimla

The Latin etymology of the word ‘intimacy’ conveys the following meaning: it is making known (intimare) what is innermost (intimus) to a close friend (intima).Intimacy, thus, incorporates a notion of sharing by acknowledging an urge of belonging together, almost inseparably. The questions arise then:  Out of all that we develop, how many are intimate relations for us? Out of all that we feel, how many can be identified as the innermost feelings and how much of even those can we express intimately in a familiar circle? The paradox of intimacy lies in the fact that it is objective but personal, somatic nonetheless psychological, affective in its dimension yet without having a firm reflective/self-conscious foundation. Most importantly, intimacy of the ‘self’ is dependent on ‘other’ and yet belonging together in such a manner as if the sharp distinction between the ‘self’ and the ‘other’ is annihilated in an act of intimate destruction. The notion of Intimacy thus proves that the ‘self’ cannot resist from belonging to the ‘other’. To be specific, the ‘self’ can only be known through the ‘other’, where it seems possible that the innermost qualities can be shared. Here comes the question of choice. Unlike the bond with and among the non-humans, intimate bond among human beings depends on, firstly, the palpable possibility of sharing and, secondly, on the mutual consensus and commitment of belonging from both the parties. Is the tangibility of such probability of intimacy purely apolitical? Are the motivations for belonging, through closeness/fidelity, fully impulsive sans politics? What is the politics that drives us from the intimate awareness of belonging-to (externally related) towards/against belonging-with (related internally)? What is the politics that often adds an esoteric dimension to intimacy?

Initially viewed as the ‘sociology of personal life’ as a part of the discourse of everyday life, intimacy now has been recently melded with the complex broader issues related to labour, economies, social justice, commodification and body shopping. The possibility of finding new ways of belonging together cannot be understood without understanding the complex connection of intimacy with changing notions of nationhood, citizenship and community. From the ancient erotic practices of ‘shringara’ to ‘prem’, the armed debate on valentines’ day to interreligious, interclass, intercaste romances/marriages and their consequences, including shaming, stigmatizing  to honour killing—all are symptomatic of the progress of intimacy in Indian hands in new and newer forms.

 This conference, focusing on the emerging forms of intimacies in contemporary India, is also an attempt to understand/address the politics behind the changing notion/nature of belonging. What causes or inhibits intimacy and what restricts or disfigures one’s identity of belonging? Questions can be asked, if at all the transformation in the modes of intimacies--resulting from transnational ties, migration/ immigration, rise of alternative socio-economic  doctrines, new communication technologies and/or transnational media, and thereby giving  rise to intimate spaces/ intimate settings for  intimate encounters—have in actuality, paved way for transversal and emancipatory structures that can politically challenge the hegemonic, traditional, Indian concepts/norms of belongings, erstwhile restricted to the rigid boundaries of class, caste, religion, region and  normative conformity.

Specifically, these are the questions we are asking: What are the benefits and challenges of cross-cultural/unconventional/non-human intimacies? What is/possibly be the politics of belonging if the contemporary forms of intimacies ever attempt in the intersecting of the issues related to geographical location/ethnicities, class, race, disability, age, (dalit/tribal)subalternity,  (religious/gender and sexual)minority and thereby aim at germinating alternative sub-cultural praxes? Can one relate the emerging trends of belonging in India with the concepts of intellectual intimacy, spiritual intimacy and the intimacy of the past through memory? Is there an essential politics behind the fusions of intimacy, commodification, bodies, labour, care, and social justice? How can one apprehend the politics and possibilities of the transformation from naming and relating—like friend, companion, lover, partner, spouse—to poly-amorous desires, dissident eroticism, anonymous/unnamed bonding or even collective belonging in a temporal manner? How can one also make sense of intimacy's paradoxes, such as domestic violence?

Papers are invited for presentation, related to any of the following suggested themes:

• Emerging Trends of Intimacies as Political (membership; inclusion/exclusion), Economic (work and organizational life), Cultural ( diverse symbolic anthropologies of experience), Personal (personally significant bonds and kinship) Belonging
• New Temporal and Spatial (Localities/Sites) Practices: Reconfigured Intimacies as Resistance to Traditional Hegemonic Control
• Democratisation of Intimate Relations as Emancipatory Belonging: Normative and Transgressive; Difference and Dissidence; Privileged and the Marginalized; Regular and  Irregular Practices in Connection with  the ‘Other’ and the Abject
• Consumable Belongings/Consuming Intimacies: Bodies (erotic/ outfits/ orientations/ fetishes/tattoos/donations/Sale), Labour, Care and Social Justice/Welfare.
• Intimacies, Technological/Media Interventions and Modified Belongings: Identity, Anonymity, Vulnerability, Surveillance and the Emerging Alterities in Response
• State, Law and the Performativity/Representation of Addictive/Contested/ Censored/Queer Intimacies in India:  Citizenship, Nationality and Transcultural Cosmopolitan Rubrics.

A limited number of participants will be invited for the seminar. Those interested in participating should send an abstract (500-700 words) of the proposed paper to following Email ID's:

• kaustavchakraborty2011@gmail.com
• aro@iias.ac.in