Power & Difference

Power & Difference. 3rd International Conference
27.08.12-29.08.12
Tampere, Finland

Inspired by the great success of the Second International Conference on Power & Knowledge held on 6-8 September 2010, we carry on probing questions of power. This year the conference will concentrate on linkages between power and difference.

Divide et impera, said the ancient Romans; a maxim that exemplifies one of the ways in which power is entangled with difference. Small privileges allotted to subgroups prevents resistance against the rule by dividing the subjects, and similarly treating units such as nation-states as separate, unique entities prevents us from realizing global structures and trends. On the other hand, aiming at equality and hence unity is hardly possible without identifying injustice related to differences such as age, class, ethnicity, or gender. Furthermore, from an epistemological perspective, the concepts we use are tools to simplify and standardize reality into a manageable number of categories relevant from the viewpoint of governance and control. These and many other linkages between power and difference will be tackled in this biennial conference now organized for the third time.

Keynote speakers will include:

Lisa Adkins, University of Newcastle, Australia

Leena Alanen, University of Jyväskylä, Finland

Karen Armstrong, University of Helsinki, Finland

Laura Huttunen, University of Tampere, Finland

Göran Therborn, University of Cambridge, UK

George Thomas, Arizona State University, USA

To submit a session proposal, please send a session title and abstract (100-200 words describing the session) through the conference management system www.paredix.com/ocs/index.php/Power2012/conf/loginon 15 February 2012 at the latest.

To propose a paper, please submit an abstract (150-200 words) through the conference management system www.paredix.com/ocs/index.php/Power2012/conf/login/ on 15 June 2012 at the latest.

For more information on the conference, please go to www.uta.fi/power2012/.