2014: Decentering Power: The Art of (Everyday) Subversion

Scissors cutting puppet strings of a man.

The 7th annual OSU/IU Joint Student Conference in Folklore and Ethnomusicology

The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio
April 4-5, 2014
Keynote address by
Alex E. Chávez

University of Notre Dame

Conference Schedule

We are happy to announce the 7th annual collaborative conference between The Ohio State University Folklore Student Association and the Folklore & Ethnomusicology Student Associations of Indiana University. This conference aims to create a space for graduate and undergraduate students to share their research in folklore, ethnomusicology, anthropology, cultural studies, material culture, literary studies, performance studies, and related disciplines connected to the study of academic and vernacular interpretations of everyday life.
 
This year’s conference focuses on power and subversion – from grand gestures to everyday acts. In his book Stance: Ideas about Emotion, Style, and Meaning for the Study of Expressive Culture, Harris M. Berger wrote, “The irreducibility of power stems from the most fundamental nature of practice and agency, and examining this concept will put into perspective the relationships among expressive culture, stance, and power” (p.132). We offer the following questions as possible starting points for this examination; however, submissions on other topics are also welcome. 

  • In what ways is power constructed and what are possible methods for subverting power?
  • What constitutes subversion and how is it enacted?
  • How are agency, power, and performance connected?
  • What links exist between everyday acts and grand gestures in building or subverting power?
  • How are new and social medias (re)shaping the circulation of official and vernacular discourse?
  • In what ways do audiences decenter or legitimize power?
  • Where do we see people “resisting resistance,” and to what ends?
  • How are power and subversion enacted differently in the public or private spheres?
  • In what ways are our research practices situated in fields of power, and how do we work with or against power?

The conference will have three opportunities for participation: 20-minute paper presentations, a poster session, and 10-minute presentations for works-in-progress. We will be accepting 250-word abstracts for all presentation formats. Submissions from diverse areas of study are welcome, but we ask that presenters articulate in their abstracts the ways that their topics connect to the study of folklore or ethnomusicology.

This year, we are also inviting upper-level graduate students to serve as panel discussants. To be considered, please send a short statement of intent (250 words) separate from any presentation proposal, explaining your interest and your area(s) of specialization.

All materials must be submitted by Sunday, January 12, 2014 to osu.iu.2014conference@gmail.com. Please submit materials in the form of a Word Document attached to your e-mail. Register for this event for free and get information on the details of the conference in the coming months.