[xmca] Fwd: CFP

Begin forwarded message:

*From: *Sarah Projansky <sprojans@UIUC.EDU>
*Date: *October 11, 2007 11:58:53 AM PDT
*To: *NCA-CCS-L@LISTSERV.UIUC.EDU
*Subject: **CFP*

*The Seventh Triennial Conference of the Kenneth Burke Society welcomes
proposals for papers and panels on any Burkean subject. Especially welcome
are proposals that address the conference theme: "Kenneth Burke:
Transcendence by Perspective." The conference will take place from June
29-July 1, 2008, at Villanova University, just outside Philadelphia,
Pennsylvania. Deadline for submissions is February 1, 2008.

**About the Conference Theme
*One of the hallmarks of Kenneth Burke's work is a deep-rooted suspicion of
entrenched antagonism, of the bitterly contested either/or. Confronting a
Western tradition mired in dualisms, and a social world fractured along
binaristic lines, Burke traced these all-too-common symptoms to their source
in the human symbolic condition and, not content simply with this diagnosis,
he also sought a cure: the disciplined cultivation of transcendence via
"ultimate" terms (*A Rhetoric of Motives* 186-89). As Burke writes
in*Attitudes Toward History
*, "When approached from a certain point of view, A and B are 'opposites.'
We mean by 'transcendence' the adoption of another point of view from which
they cease to be opposites" (336). Although inspired in part by his reading
of Plato, Burke's vision of transcendence avoids the pitfalls of the
transcendental, but instead is grounded solidly in the necessity of our
embodied symbolicity. In Burke's skilled hands, transcendence becomes not
the elimination of perspective, of partisanship, but the embrace of
transcendence by perspective-because only by rigorously acknowledging the
symbolic nature of perspective can we move beyond the stagnant stalemate of
reified social, political, and philosophical binaries.

This theme calls on conference participants to explore the relevance of
Burkean thought for the transcendence of conflicts, whether enduring (as in
the American "racial divide") or ephemeral (as in the humanitarian crises of
today). Over the course of the convention, a combination of keynote
speakers, featured presenters, and seminar leaders will engage in their
various incarnations the pressures of symbolicity, the multiple dimensions
of perspective, and the possibilities of transcendence.

Featuring diverse opportunities for engagement with Burke's enduring
relevance, the seventh triennial expects to continue the interdisciplinary
tradition of past triennials, with participation by scholars from
communication, rhetoric, literary theory, sociology, American studies,
critical/cultural studies, and theology (among other fields).Most triennials
have produced books of conference proceedings and all have promoted work by
their participants leading to important articles and books on Burkean
subjects.

*About the Conference
*A number of prominent Burke scholars will participate in the conference as
speakers and seminar leaders. Detailed information about their work is
available at the conference website. The keynoters will be Joseph R.
Gusfield and John S. Wright. Featured speakers will include A. Cheree
Carlson, Michael Hyde, and Robert Perinbanayagam. Seminar leaders with their
topics include Ann George (Burke in the 1930s), Scott Newstok (Burke and
Shakespeare), Mari Boor Tonn (Burke and Feminism), and Robert Wess
(Transcendence by Perspective).

Visit the conference website (*
http://communication.villanova.edu/burke/index.htm*) for information about
nominations for Kenneth Burke Society awards for Lifetime Achievement,
Distinguished Service, and Emerging Scholar.

It's expected that this conference, like previous ones, will feature an
enjoyable evening with the Burke family, including a reading by Julie
Whitaker from her recent collection of Burke's later poetry (*Late Poems,
1968-1993*, co-edited with David Blakesley).

Finally, a special feature of this conference will be an event celebrating
the lives and works of three much-missed members of the Kenneth Burke
Society: Bernard Brock, Leland Griffin, and William Rueckert.

*Proposals for paper and panels
*While always encouraging submissions focused around the conference theme,
we also welcome work by faculty as well as students on any subject related
to Burkean scholarship. Please identify student proposals as such,
indicating school, area of major study, level (graduate or undergraduate).
Proposal should be 250-350 words in length (for panels, include 250-350
words for each paper). Submit proposal electronically, as either PDF or MS
Word document, to* george.boone@villanova.edu*, with the words "Submission
to Burke Conference" on the subject line of the E-mail.

Deadline for proposals: February 1, 2008.
Selections for the conference will be announced April 1, 2008.

The length of completed papers should be appropriate for a 15-20 minute
presentation. Completed papers submitted by May 1, 2008 will be eligible for
awards, one for the best conference paper, the other for the best graduate
student paper. In addition, up to two meritorious undergraduate papers will
receive conference grants (travel, housing, conference registration) from
Graduate Programs in Communication at Villanova.

*About the Conference Location
*All events and programs for the convention will be held at the Villanova
University Conference Center, located just off of its main campus. The
combination historic mansion and contemporary conference facility will allow
participants to enjoy a peaceful, bucolic setting, without having to stray
far from the day's meeting and banquet rooms. Conference participants will
have three options for housing: the Conference Center itself, the nearby
Radnor Hotel, or air-conditioned campus apartments-this last option
especially helpful for budget-conscious Burkeans. Details on housing prices
and reservations will be posted by January, 2008. * Please note:
transportation will be provided at no additional cost for all those staying
at the Radnor Hotel and campus apartments.

*For additional information on paper submission, registration, housing, and
other matters, consult the conference website (*
http://communication.villanova.edu/burke/index.htm*) or direct questions to
George Boone, Assistant to the Conference Planner (*
george.boone@villanova.edu*), or to Bryan Crable, Conference Planner (*
bryan.crable@villanova.edu*).
US Mail should be directed to Communication Department, Villanova
University, 800 Lancaster Ave., Villanova, PA 19085-1699, USA.

-- 
Sarah Projansky
Associate Professor
Gender and Women's Studies Program
Unit for Cinema Studies
University of Illinois
911 S. Sixth Street
Champaign, IL  61820
(217) 333-2990 (office)
(217) 333-0151 (fax)
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