CALL. 26.02.2018: [PANEL 10] Reading and Writing for Rome: Literacies of Administration (Panel at t
FECHA LÍMITE/DEADLINE/SCADENZA: 26/02/2018
FECHA CONGRESO/CONGRESS DATE/DATA CONGRESSO: 11-12-13-14/07/2018
LUGAR/LOCATION/LUOGO: St Andrews University (St Andrews, Scotland)
ORGANIZADOR/ORGANIZER/ORGANIZZATORE: Dr. Virginia L. Campbell (Open University) ; Dr. Anouk Vermeulen (St. Andrews University)
CALL:
We wish to invite you to participate in the panel Reading and Writing for Rome: Literacies of Administration at the Celtic Conference in Classics at the University of St. Andrews taking place July 11th-14th. This session aims to explore literacy, understanding, and perception of inscriptions with particular attention to administrative aspects, taking a contextual, multidisciplinary approach, and raising issues from the spread of Latin to the visual impact of inscriptions. We intend to produce an edited volume of the papers presented, aiming for publication by 2020.
Literacy in the Roman World has been debated for more than twenty‐five years since the publication of Harris’s landmark study. Despite the knowledge that Roman cities (and the countryside as well) were full of things to read it is still commonly accepted that literacy was relatively low. This places question marks at the perception and understanding of text, especially those texts publically displayed and essential for the structure of the empire, such as legal inscriptions, road signs, boundary marking, taxes and the sale of goods. The epigraphic culture of the late Republic and early Empire is much studied, although often with a focus on religious or funerary commemoration and dedication. Through a focus on the administrative elements in milestones, fasti, election graffiti and dipinti, and other inscriptions related to regulation and commerce, this panel aims to discuss implied levels of literacy and/or general understanding as well as civic participation, touching on issues of globalisation, imperialism, agency and identity. This also raises questions about the spread and importance of Latin, multilingualism and translations, and the perception and understanding of Latin in relation to local languages.
We are inviting a range of scholars from different disciplines and backgrounds, to connect issues of administration, taxation, civic duty, identity and community building, as represented in the public writing in the Roman world and to discuss implied levels of literacy and/or general understanding as well as civic participation, touching on issues of globalisation, multilingualism, imperialism, agency and identity. We particularly would like to encourage PhD students and early career researchers, and with that objective we are accepting abstracts for papers both 20 and 40 minutes in length. Please specify the desired paper length on your abstract.
Prof. William Johnson (Duke) will act as discussant for the panel, and confirmed speakers include Dr A. Mullen (Nottingham) Dr J. Howley (Columbia), Dr S. Stevens (Utrecht), Dr O. Olesti-Vila (Barcelona) and Dr A. Graham (Warwick), amongst others.
Please submit an abstract of max. 200 words by Monday 26 February 2018 to either of the organisers (details below), and we will inform speakers as soon as possible after that.
Finally, please note papers can be presented in English or French, traditionally the two official languages of the Celtic Conference.
For more information on the Celtic Conference, please see https://www.st-andrews.ac.uk/classics/events/conferences/ccc/
Best wishes
Dr. Virginia L. Campbell (Virginia.campbell@open.ac.uk)
Dr. Anouk Vermeulen (av22@st-andrews.ac.uk)
Co-organisers