Call for Papers: Modernity and Its Discontents

This marks the seventh meeting of the Michael Oakeshott Association to be held at Colorado College, Colorado Springs, Colorado, USA, September 26-29, 2013

This year, we invite submissions on a broad topic: “Modernity and its Discontents.” We hope to engage Oakeshott scholars as well as others with an interest in our contemporary situation. Comparative papers are welcome (for example, “Oakeshott and Strauss on Modernity”). However, the focus should not be merely on comparison and contrast but on showing how the thinkers’ analyses illuminate modernity itself. Topics that might be considered include the character of contemporary politics in the West, whether Oakeshott’s analysis of modern politics as “Rationalist” is applicable today, the intersection of religion and politics, and the character of education in the modern academy. In general, we welcome papers that offer not merely cultural critique, but assessment: in what ways should we celebrate modernity? How does it fall short of our expectations?

Abstracts, no more than 500 words, should be sent by April 1, 2013 to Elizabeth_Corey@baylor.edu. Submissions should also include: title of paper, full name(s), affiliation, current position, CV, and an email address.