30th Berkeley Annual Interdisciplinary German Studies Conference

Arrested Mobilities: Stillness, Power and Modernity

The German Department’s annual graduate conference will take place on Zoom Friday, Feb. 25th (8am-1pm) and Saturday, Feb. 26th (8am-1:45pm). The topic is “Arrested Mobilities: Stillness, Power and Modernity”. We have a small in-person reception planned on Friday at 4:30pm in Dwinelle 370 for anyone who’s interested in discussing the conference while enjoying light refreshments.

 As early as the 1920’s, Robert Musil remarked on the enormous effort it takes to stand still in a world that demands constant motion. Reflecting on the zooming street he sees through his window, the protagonist of Der Mann ohne Eigenschaften comments: “Könnte man die Sprünge der Aufmerksamkeit messen, die Leistungen der Augenmuskeln, die Pendelbewegungen der Seele und alle die Anstrengungen, die ein Mensch vollbringen muss, um sich im Fluß einer Straße aufrecht zu halten, es käme vermutlich… eine Größe heraus, mit der verglichen die Kraft, die Atlas braucht, um die Welt zu stemmen.” 

See the full conference program here.