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The Fourth International Conference of
the Whitehead Research ProjectClaremont Graduate University
Claremont, California
December 2-4, 2010Featured Speaker: Isabelle Stengers
In keeping with its mission to analyze the relevance of Whitehead's thought in dialogue with contemporary philosophies, the Whitehead Research Project is sponsoring a conference to explore some of the congruences and tensions between these various attempts to return to speculative thought and to reorient the concept of the thing (or object). This conference will provide the opportunity to identify and work through shared elements and problems, which have been developed by those working in the philosophies of A. N. Whitehead and Gilles Deleuze, Actor-Network-Theory, and Speculative Realism.
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General Information
Contemporary thought is in the process of throwing off the shackles of the 20th century's stubborn intertwining of thought, language, and reality in order, once again, to raise the possibility of an effective version of speculative thought. In doing so, it is moving beyond simplifying and totalizing claims of anti-speculation and anti-metaphysics toward the potentials of "constructivism" and "realism" as genuine philosophical avenues for thought. One common element of these diverse approaches is the importance of enunciating the status and role of 'things' within the world, within thought, and within the relation of thought to the world. In keeping with its mission to analyze the relevance of Whitehead's thought in dialogue with contemporary philosophies, the Whitehead Research Project is sponsoring a conference to explore some of the congruences and tensions between these various attempts to return to speculative thought and to reorient the concept of the thing (or object).
This conference will provide the opportunity to identify and work through shared elements and problems, which have been developed by those working in the philosophies of A. N. Whitehead and Gilles Deleuze, Actor-Network-Theory, and Speculative Realism. The extensive work of Isabelle Stengers in its relation to Whitehead and Deleuze could be seen as indicative of the milieu which contemporary thought inhabits and the problems it is addressing. The importance of this major re-conceptualization of the demand for a renewed interrogation of the inter-relation of metaphysics and things is also evident in the work of Bruno Latour who has often discussed the importance of the work of both Whitehead and Stengers for his re-description of objects in terms of associations and networks. Speculative Realism has, recently, developed approaches to such questions which have a tensile but productive relationship with the concepts and approaches raised by Whitehead, Stengers, and Latour. This conference will include participants who are influential in all of these fields and its overall aim is to provide an open forum to further these important debates and to produce new modes of thought.
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Call for Student Papers
Date: December 2-4, 2010
Location: Claremont, California
Submissions Due: Friday, October 1 to Roland FaberThe Whitehead Research Project (WRP) is hosting a major international event that will provide the opportunity to identify and work through shared elements and problems, which have been developed by those working in the philosophies of A. N. Whitehead and Gilles Deleuze, Actor-Network-Theory, and Speculative Realism. Confirmed attendees include Isabelle Stengers, Donna Haraway, Steven Shaviro and Graham Harman.
The extensive work of Isabelle Stengers in its relation to Whitehead and Deleuze could be seen as indicative of the milieu which contemporary thought inhabits and the problems it is addressing. The importance of this major re-conceptualization of the demand for a renewed interrogation of the inter-relation of metaphysics and things is also evident in the work of Bruno Latour who has often discussed the importance of the work of both Whitehead and Stengers for his re-description of objects in terms of associations and networks. Speculative Realism has, recently, developed approaches to such questions which have a tensile but productive relationship with the concepts and approaches raised by Whitehead, Stengers, and Latour. This conference will include participants who are influential in all of these fields and its overall aim is to provide an open forum to further these important debates and to produce new modes of thought.
In particular, we are asking students to focus on the challenges which face contemporary thought in accounting for the peculiar status of diverse things within a robust theoretical (metaphysical) framework which avoids essentialism or the creation of fixed categories of thought or being.
Specific questions to address are:
- How can we account for the thingness of things within philosophies of becoming?
- What kind of metaphysics can meet both the demands of post-structuralist critiques of objects and subjects whilst also accounting for the diversity of things in the contemporary world?
Submissions should be in the form of full-length papers and must make a philosophical contribution. Accepted papers will be distributed to the conference participants to be read prior to the conference. At the conference, students will have 15 minutes in which to present their ideas. Please include an abstract of no more than 250 words. All papers and abstracts should be sent to the co-organizer of the conference, Professor Roland Faber, no later than October 1st. Submissions should be sent electronically to Roland Faber, and should include:
- Your paper (with no identifications of the author within the text)
- Abstract (also without identifications)
A separate cover page with your name, paper title, institutional affiliation, telephone number, e-mail address and mailing address.
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Participants
- Isabelle Stengers (Université Libre de Bruxelles)
- Donna Haraway (University of California at Santa Cruz)
- Ian Bogost (The Georgia Institute of Technology)
- James J. Bono (University at Buffalo)
- Nathan Brown (UC Davis)
- Levi Bryant (Collin College)
- Didier Debaise (Max Planck Institute, Berlin)
- Roland Faber (Claremont Graduate University)
- Andrew Goffey (Middlesex University)
- Michael Halewood (University of Essex)
- Graham Harman (American University in Cairo)
- Judith Jones (Fordham University)
- Steven Shaviro (Wayne State University)
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Schedule
Unless otherwise noted, all events will be held a Albrecht Auditorium, CGU.
Thursday, December 2nd
6:30-8:00
PUBLIC LECTURE I
Isabelle Stengers
Respondent: Donna Haraway
8:00
Stauffer 110, CGUReception
Friday, December 3rd
9:00-10:30
DOUBLE LECTURE
10:30-11:00
Break
11:00-12:30
DOUBLE LECTURE
12:30-2:00
Lunch
2:00-3:30
DOUBLE LECTURE
3:30-4:00
Break
4:00-5:30
STUDENT PANEL
5:30-6:30
Break
6:30-8:00
PUBLIC LECTURE II
Steven Shaviro and Graham Harman8:00
Dinner
Saturday, December 5th
9:00-10:30
DOUBLE LECTURE
10:30-11:00
Break
11:00-12:30
Double Lecture
12:30-1:30
Stauffer 110, CGULunch
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Registration
- The public lectures are free, open to the public, and do not require registration.
- Registration is free for faculty, students, and staff of the Claremont Colleges and Claremont School of Theology.
- For all other individuals, the fees are as follows:
Entire Conference: $125 | Daily Rate: $50
Registration provides the following: participation in the non-public portions of the conference, the opportunity to engage in the discussions of the panelists, snacks and lunch each day, and a conference packet with a copy of each of the papers written by the panelists.
ONLINE REGISTRATION IS CURRENTLY INACTIVE. PLEASE CHECK BACK SOON.
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Logistics
Conference Locations
The conference will be held in Albrecht Auditorium (in Stauffer Hall) on the campus of Claremont Graduate University. Click here for a map of and directions to campus, a google map, or a mapquest map.
Hotel Information
Either of the following hotels should be able to nicely accommodate most any of your needs: The Doubletree Hotel Claremont or the Hotel Claremont & Tennis Club. The Doubletree is within walking distance of campus, but both are equally recommended. Shuttle service to and from the airport is available, and service to and from CGU will be provided for conference registrants.
Contact Us
Click here to submit a question or comment online.
Offline Contact Information
Whitehead Research Project
Attn: Metaphysics & Things Conference
1325 North College Ave.
Claremont, CA 91711
Phone: (909) 621-5330
Fax: (909) 621-2760
Our office is open Monday-Friday, 8:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. PST.
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Sponsors
We would like to express our appreciation to the following: