27th Interdisciplinary German Studies Conference: Affective Realisms

Affective Realisms

27th Interdisciplinary German Studies Conference

February 22-23

 

We often think of realism as a reactionary gesture, circumscribing all that is possible within the limits of the status quo – but recent developments in critical theory, philosophy, and literary studies have mobilized affect and reality in surprising new configurations. Scholars such as Eve Kosofsky-Sedgwick, Brian Massumi, Sarah Ahmed, Jane Bennett, and Mel Y. Chen have figured affect as something very “real” in itself, a non-subjective force that gives form to bodies at once material, social, and political. As contemporary theorists return to the question of realism after the linguistic turn, affect is never far away.

 

On Friday and Saturday February 22-23, 2019, the Berkeley German Department will hold the 27th Annual Interdisciplinary German Studies Conference on the topic of “Affective Realisms.” Over the course of a common texts discussion, five panels, a workshop with Prof. Hermann Kappelhoff (Freie Universität Berlin), and a keynote talk delivered by Prof. Rei Terada (UC Irvine), we will consider the historical configurations, formal structures, emancipatory potentials and possible dangers of thinking affect and the real together. Please send us an email at berkeleygermanconference@gmail.com if you would like a copy of our Affective Realisms Conference Reader. You can find our program here .