Image: Jo-Anne McArthur/We Animals.
The Humanities Research Institute will be hosting its Spring Symposium on Tuesday, April 17, 12:30 to 4:30 pm at the Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts room 406. The public is welcome to attend! No registration required.
This year’s theme, “The Elephant in the Room: Making Space for Animals in Our Research and Teaching,” explores the use and depictions of animals in history, literature, art, and society. Faculty members from the Faculty of Humanities and the Faculty of Social Science will share their work on various aspects of animal studies, including critical animal studies and human-animal studies.
Opening remarks: Michael Carter, Associate Dean, Research and Graduate Studies, Faculty of Humanities
Session I: 1:00 p.m.
Chair: Keri Cronin (Visual Arts)
- John Bonnett (History), “Turns, Convergences and De-Stabilization: Is the Animal turn the next Big Thing in History?”
- Barbara Seeber (English Language & Literature), “Animals and the Country House Tradition Revisited in Mary Leapor and Jane Austen”
- Elizabeth Neswald (History), “Feeding the Dog”
- Adam Dickinson (English Language & Literature), “Anatomic: Microbes, Chemicals, and Metabolic Poetics in the Anthropocene”
Coffee/tea break: 2:30 p.m. – 2:45 p.m.
Session II: 2:45 p.m.
Chair: Keri Cronin (Visual Arts)
- Kendra Coulter (Labour Studies), “The Elephants are Working: Animals, Labour, and Care”
- Keri Cronin (Visual Arts), “Surveillance or Sanctuary?: The Power and Potential of Live Cams for Humane Education”
- Lauren Corman (Sociology), “Vile Creatures: Abject Animals at the Limits of Society and Culture”
Presentation of Faculty of Humanities Award for Excellence in Research and Creative Activity to Professor Donna Szoke
Donna Szoke (Visual Arts), “Invisible Animals”
Closing remarks: Carol Merriam, Dean, Faculty of Humanities
Limited parking available on site. Members of the Brock University community and guests are welcome to park on a first-come first-served basis. City parking lots are available nearby. See www.stcatharines.ca/en/livein/ParkingLotsGarages.asp