Society for the Interdisciplinary Study of Social Imagery

Seventeenth Annual Conference

CALL FOR PAPERS

THE IMAGE OF VIOLENCE

in Literature, Media, and Society

Keynote Speaker

Dr. Henry Lee

Forensic Scientist - University of New Haven

March 8-10, 2007

Colorado Springs, Colorado

An interdisciplinary conference exploring the image of violence - in culture, literature, history, theory, politics, business. All portrayals, metaphors, and ideas of violence will be subject to analysis, including violence as war, terror, defense, freedom, power, control, religion, race, sex, entertainment. All disciplinary perspectives are welcome, including humanities, social science, criminal justice, business, law, natural science.  Possible topics include:

* Violence in literature, art, popular culture (novels, film, TV, music, games, advertising, etc.)

* The image of violence in theories of power, politics, society, control, crime, religion, history

* Violence as entertainment: news, advertising, sports, social impacts, cartoons, etc.

* Violence as sexy and heroic: action movies, superheroes, �real men,� Rambo, John Wayne

* War - Iraq, Vietnam, WWII, WWI; Terror - 9/11, Oklahoma City, Northern Ireland

* Violence as genocide: the Final Solution, ethnic cleansing, tribal slaughters

* Technology and violence: guns, the Bomb, arms race, WMDs, chemical, biological

* History and institutions: war, conquest, assassination, colonialism, imperialism, globalization

* Corporate violence - explicit and implicit: Bhopal, the Pinto, Enron, Love Canal, etc.

* Theoretical images of violence: competition, revolution, natural selection, class struggle, etc.

* Religion and tradition: crusades, jihad, the Middle East, honor, sacrifice, cults, terror

* Families and sex: wife abuse, child abuse, pornography, sex trade, issues of abortion

* Violence in production: class structure, labor wars, strikes, organizing, picket lines

* Race and the Other: slavery, lynching, �white supremacy,� anti-Semitism, gay bashing

* Crime and violence: illegal drugs, prisons, police corruption, illegal immigration, serial killers

* Violence and the frontier: the cowboy, conquering the wilderness (removing the Indians)

* Environmental violence: pollution, global warming, the rain forest, species depletion

* Other variations - eclectic and innovative approaches are encouraged

An annual conference on imagery in society with a different thematic focus each year. Past topics have included the Image of War, Class, the Frontier, the Hero (visit <chass.colostate-pueblo.edu/sissi>). A conference Proceedings will be published from selected papers.

Please submit (email, fax, mail) a one-page abstract or a panel proposal with abstracts by Dec. 4, 2006. Graduate students are welcome and organized panels are encouraged. Fax: 719-549-2705 Email: violence@colostate-pueblo.edu. Mail: Will Wright, Colorado State University - Pueblo, Pueblo, CO 8l00l-4901. Organizers: Will Wright, Professor of Sociology, Colorado State University-Pueblo and Steven Kaplan, President, University of New Haven. For further information contact Will Wright: 719-549-2538, will.wright@colostate-pueblo.edu.

                                         Sponsored by Colorado State University-Pueblo

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