Widening Perspectives: Astrobiology, Big History, and the Socio-Political Benefits of the Cosmic Perspective
Seminar
Astrobiology is usually defined as the study of the origin, evolution and distribution of life in the universe. As such it is inherently interdisciplinary and cannot help but engender worldviews infused by cosmic and evolutionary perspectives. In this respect, astrobiology has strong synergies with…
Books that Changed Humanity: Theological Political Treatise
Lecture
Books that Changed Humanity is an initiative of the Humanities Research Centre, based at the Australian National University. The HRC invites experts to introduce and lead discussion of major texts from a variety of cultural traditions, all of which have informed the way we understand…
Res Est Publica Caesar: The Emperor as Public Property in Roman Poetry and Currency
Seminar
Rome’s first emperor Augustus permanently recentered political, economic, and religious institutions around his public persona while claiming equality with private citizens and continuity with republican tradition. As Augustus expanded his office, though, observers found innovative, even humorous…
George Rudé Seminar in French History and Civilisation
Conference
George Rudé Seminar in French History and Civilisation 4 to 7 July 2018 | Australian National University GeorgeRudeSeminar2018@anu.edu.au We are pleased to announce the 21st George Rudé Seminar in French History and Civilisation, which will be hosted by The…
Austen’s Theatricality and the Limits of Realism
Seminar
Jane Austen’s narrative economy is often praised, as is her psychological realism, yet the first relies in important ways on the stage and the second is haunted by the generic expectations and dramaturgies of the comedy of manners and melodrama. The traditional view of Austen as anti-theatrical has…
Always Politicise?
Seminar
Is literary scholarship an emancipatory political activity? In this paper, I argue that the claim to some form of political emancipation has become a tic—a professionalizing tic—of our discipline. Recent books by Joseph North and Caroline Levine provide examples of the phenomenon for the current…
Books that Changed Humanity: Is Shakespeare a Book?
Seminar
Books that Changed Humanity is an initiative of the Humanities Research Centre, based at the Australian National University. The HRC invites experts to introduce and lead discussion of major texts from a variety of cultural traditions, all of which have informed the way we understand…