[Discussion] THE POLITICS OF POSTCOLONIALITY

[gonul@bilkent.edu.tr]

THE POLITICS OF POSTCOLONIALITY: CONTEXTS AND CONFLICTS 
(McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada - 24 
October 2003) 

Call for Papers for Proposed Roundtable Discussion: 

Empire Resurrected: (Un)Building Imperial Colonies in 
the 21st Century 

One aspect of the development of Post/colonial Theory 
is that it relies on analyzing past events, on what 
took place but not on what might take place. The 
proposed roundtable discussion will examine the role pf 
Post/Colonial Theory in the 21st century, and how the 
possibility of having the Empire Resurrected may 
transform it. 

Some of the themes that can be dealt with during this 
session are: 

- What are the chances of establishing direct 
colonialism again in the 21st century? Why did old 
empires give up their old colonies in favor of indirect 
colonialism? What are the conditions that would make 
them revert back to direct colonialism? 

- How can Postcolonial theory respond/react to such a 
possibility? What would be its role? 

- What are the circumstances 
(economical/political/cultural/social) that would 
facilitate the resurrection of direct 
colonialism/empire? What are the circumstance that 
might impede such a dramatic switch? 

- What are the (dis)advantages of going from indirect 
to direct colonialism? How would this impact 
globalization and local nationalism? 

- How can new colonial schemes be countered? What 
should be the new mode of resistance? What is the role 
of civil disobedience in this case? Is 
terrorism/radical resistance the new mode for 
countering the new empire? What are the viable modes of 
resistance? 

Please send a detailed abstract (between 300- 500 
words) with a short bibliography (150-300 words) to 
Suha Kudsieh: suhak@canada.com by May 1, 2003. 

Senders of accepted abstracts will be notified after 
May 25, 2003. 

Conference papers (11-13 pages) will be circulated 
among notified participants by Tuesday Sept. 30, 2003. 

The roundtable discussion will comprise of 4-8 
participants whose abstracts have been accepted and who 
come from different disciplines (Political Science, 
Economics, History, Humanities, Theory,Cultural Studies 
and so on). Conference papers (12-14 pages) will be 
circulated among notified participants by Tuesday Sept. 
30, 2003. All participants will read the papers in 
advance and prepare helpful 
feedback/suggestions/questions. During the conference, 
each participant will provide a 5-7 minute statement (5 
pages) about their topic. This will be followed by a 
larger discussion. 

Minutes will be taken and conclusions/final remarks 
will be distributed among participants and among 
interested members of the audience. Hopefully, this 
roundtable discussion will outline the new role of 
Post/Colonialism in the 21st century, and will evolve 
into an edited collection of essays. 

If you have any questions, or need more information, 
please email: 

Suha Kudsieh: suhak@canada.com 
Centre for Comparative Literature 
University of Toronto 
Toronto, ON, Canada