[Discussion] CFP: Online Symposium on Theory's Empire (7/12/05; weblog)

[Sule Tarakcioglu]

From: "A. Cephalous" <acephalous@gmail.com>

The Valve (http://www.thevalve.org/go) is a literary weblog dedicated to the
proposition that the function of the little magazine can follow this form.
Beginning July 12th, the contributors to the Valve and a number of prominent
scholars--including Michael Berube, Gerald Graff, Scott McLemee, 
&c.--will be
discussing Daphne Patai and Will H. Corral's recently published Theory's 
Empire:
An Anthology of Dissent.  This is the first of many planned online colloquia
concerning recently published works of interest to literary and cultural
scholars. Thinkers of all theoretical stripes are welcome to attend and
encouraged to participate in the ongoing conversation. A brief 
description of
the anthology and a link to its table of contents can be found below.

Theory's Empire: An Anthology of Dissent

Not too long ago, literary theorists were writing about the death of the 
novel
and the death of the author; today many are talking about the death of 
Theory.
Theory, as the many theoretical ism's (among them postcolonialism,
postmodernism, and New Historicism) are now known, once seemed so 
exciting but
has become ossified and insular. This iconoclastic collection is an 
excellent
companion to current anthologies of literary theory, which have embraced an
uncritical stance toward Theory and its practitioners. Written by nearly 
fifty
prominent scholars, the essays in /Theory's Empire/ question the ideas,
catchphrases, and excesses that have let Theory congeal into a predictable
orthodoxy. More than just a critique, however, this collection provides 
readers
with effective tools to redeem the study of literature, restore reason 
to our
intellectual life, and redefine the role and place of Theory in the academy.

http://www.columbia.edu/cu/cup/catalog/data/023113/0231134169.HTM


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