CEELBAS Workshop, Sarajevo Revisited, 30 June - 1 July 2011‏

CEELBAS Workshop, Sarajevo Revisited, 30 June - 1 July 2011‏

With the twentieth anniversary of the siege of Sarajevo approaching it seems a timely moment to revisit the city and the myths that surround it. Today, the city and the region have been overshadowed by the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. In the 1990s the besieged city became central to the future of Europe, to questions of international foreign policy, and indeed to the notion of western civilisation itself. Known previously only for its minor role in World War One, the city rapidly became a symbol of a post-Cold War world order in which ethnic divisions had replaced ideological ones, and barbarism was unleashed. At the same time, the city was understood as an exception in the region, variously representing Europe's commitment to multiculturalism, and defence of European Islam. This workshop aims to revisit the city in its many manifestations past and present, and explore its role in debates on Europe, the Balkans and the post-Cold War world order.

Contributions are invited for an interdisciplinary workshop to be held at the University of Bath, funded by CEELBAS, which aims to explore the changing representations and significations of the city. One strand of this workshop will examine literary, cinematic, journalistic and artistic representations of the city. A second strand will examine its symbolic significance in political and intellectual debates. Here, the uses of the city in debates on the clash of civilisations, multiculturalism, new imperialisms and the future of supranational bodies such as the UN are welcomed. Papers on any period in the history of the city will be considered, although the focus of the workshop is on the recent war and its aftermath.

Workshop Organiser: Dr Karoline von Oppen, University of Bath, Bath BA2 7AY

Please send 200 word abstracts of papers to mlskvo@bath.ac.uk

A publication of contributions is planned. by 1 April 2011.