2018/2019 Fellows Program. “The World of Print(s): Multiples and Meanings in Early Modern Europe and North America,” co-directed by Mark Hosford (art) and Kevin Murphy (history of art). Participants in the program are José A. Cárdenas Bunsen (Spanish and Portuguese), Patricia Fumerton (English, University of California, Santa Barbara), Jana Harper (art), Paul C. H. Lim (Divinity School and history), and David H. Price (religious studies), and Rebecca K. VanDiver (history of art). 

2018/2019 Warren Center Graduate Student Fellows. Seven graduate students are participating in the Warren Center’s 13th dissertation completion fellowship program. They are Amaryah S. Armstrong (graduate department of religion), Emma L. Banks (anthropology), Iyaxel Cojti Ren (anthropology), Sarah M. Gorman (philosophy), Katherine R. McKenna (history), Lauren A. Mitchell (English), and Kadiri J. Vaquer Fernández (Spanish & Portuguese). Amaryah S. Armstrong is theAmerican Studies Fellow, Sarah M. Gormanis theGeorge J. Graham, Jr. Fellow, Lauren A. Mitchell is theElizabeth E. Fleming Fellow, and Kadiri J. Vaquer Fernández is theJoe and Mary Harper Fellow. 

Robert Penn Warren: A Vision. Screening of documentary film followed by Q&A with the film’s director Tom Thurman. January 23, 4:10 p.m., Kissam Classroom, Second Floor. A Kentucky Educational Television production, this documentary explores the life and career of three-time Pulitzer Prize winner and Vanderbilt alumnus Robert Penn Warren. The film traces Warren's birth (1905) and upbringing in Guthrie, Kentucky, his years at Vanderbilt University, and his path as a poet, novelist, critic, and teacher. Co-sponsored by Robert Penn Warren Center for the Humanities, American Studies, Cinema & Media Arts, Creative Writing, English Department, and the Residential Colleges. 

Black Atlantic History Lecture. Monday February 4, from 4:00 to 6:00 p.m. Location TBD. Dr. Herman L. Bennett(history, City University of New York) will deliver the Warren Center’s annual Black Atlantic History Lecture entitled “Before the Human: Africans, Sovereigns & Slaves.” The Black Atlantic History Lecture is hosted by the Warren Center’s Circum-Atlantic Studies Seminar, the Center for Latin American Studies, and the Bishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center in honor of Black History Month. 

2018/2019 Harry C. Howard Jr. Lecture with National Endowment for the Humanities Chairman Jon Parrish Peede. April 2, 4:10 p.m., Community Room of the Vanderbilt Central Library. Chairman Peede is an alumnus of Vanderbilt University, graduating with an undergraduate degree in English in 1991. He was confirmed by the U.S. Senate in April 2018 as the eleventh chairman of the NEH. Peede’s previous positions include Publisher of theVirginia Quarterly Review  at the University of Virginia, Literature Grants Director at the National Endowment for the Arts, and Counselor to NEA Chairman Dana Gioia. His campus visit will also honor the 30th anniversary of the Warren Center’s founding. 

Telling Stories: Modes, Media, Meanings Art Exhibit. April 10 at 4:30 p.m. at the Warren Center. The 2017/18 Faculty Fellows Program at the Robert Penn Warren Center for the Humanities will host a reception and an unveiling of their collective large-scale book project, “Telling Stories.” In collaboration with Nashville-based book artist Britt Stadig, the ten fellows have created a large-scale artist book which not only explores the fellows’ individual research narratives, but also emphasizes the importance of the humanities and the common threads that ultimately connect all of us, no matter how disparate we seem. Check our website for additional information about the project and the artist. 

Florence Dore, Novel Sounds: Southern Fiction in the Age of Rock and Roll. April 11, 4:10 p.m. First Amendment Center. Dore is professor of English at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. Co-sponsored by the Robert Penn Warren Center for the Humanities and The Curb Center for Art, Enterprise & Public Policy. 

The following is a list of seminars and reading groups for the fall semester. For more detailed information please contact the seminar coordinators or the Warren Center. 

18th/19th Century Colloquium. The colloquium brings together faculty, graduate students, and visiting scholars to explore ground-breaking scholarship on the arts, cultures, and histories of the 18th and 19th centuries. While loosely focused around British culture, the group also invites scholars from other linguistic and geographic fields to share work and join in the discussion. Meeting are scheduled for February 8 featuring Siraj Ahmed (English, Texas A&M), February 22, and March 15 featuring Rae Greiner (English, Indiana University), all at 2:00 p.m. Seminar coordinators: Rachel Teukolsky (English) and Scott Juengel (English). 

American Studies after the American Century. During most of its eighty-year history, the field of American Studies operated against a backdrop of American global preeminence. From World War II through the Cold War to September 11, Americanists defined themselves and their work in relation to the military might, economic affluence, and cultural reach of the United States. While this relationship was frequently antagonistic and critical, it rarely questioned the status of the U.S. as a global hegemonic power. The presidential election of 2016 has fundamentally called this view into question. The corrosion of political norms, the emergence of new political movements, and the country’s retreat from long-held global commitments seem to indicate that the “American Century” has at least symbolically come to an end. What does this mean for scholars working in American Studies today? This seminar will try to formulate some answers to this question by allowing students to present work-in-progress, by reading current scholarship in the field, and by inviting faculty to engage in discussions about the field’s history and its possible futures. Meeting are scheduled for January 10, February 6, and March 20 with a Spring Colloquium on April 12 featuring Alexander Olson (history, Western Kentucky) and Jay Mechling (American Studies, UC Davis), all at 12:15 p.m. Seminar coordinators: Alex Korsunsky (anthropology) and Mario Rewers (history). 

Brazilian Studies. In its sixth edition, the Brazilian Studies group will focus on matters of diversity and development, reflecting on issues regarding the socio-political and economic realities of Brazil. The monthly meetings will consist of discussions among both attendees and invited speakers based upon pre-circulated papers concerning their research.  Guests come from a variety of disciplines, including (but not limited to) history, Latin American studies, sociology, anthropology, and earth and environmental sciences. Meetings are to be scheduled soon. Seminar coordinators: Maria Paula Andrade (history), Alexandre Pelegrino (history), and Jacob C. Brown (Spanish and Portuguese). 

Circum-Atlantic Studies Seminar. The Circum-Atlantic Studies Seminar was launched at the Warren Center in 2001. Seminar participants and invited guests discuss work-in-progress that is interdisciplinary and focused on themes related to Atlantic slavery, colonialism, and/or post colonialism. This research links Africa, Europe, the Americas, and the Caribbean and addresses diverse constituencies on campus. In 2007, as an offshoot of the original seminar, the Warren Center also created a Black Atlantic History Lecture that invites major scholars of the Black Atlantic to campus every February to give a public lecture in honor of Black History Month. This years’ speaker is Dr. Herman Bennett (history, City University of New York) on February 4, 2019. A meeting is also set for April 17 featuring Julia Gaffield (history, Georgia State University). Seminar coordinators: Jane Landers (history) and Celso Castilho (history). 

Contemporary in Theory. Composed of faculty members and graduate students, the Contemporary in Theory seminar examines contemporary issues that range from global capitalism, critical race theories, climate change, digital media and technology, and the definitions and boundaries of the human. The seminar fosters innovative approaches to the contemporary across diverse disciplines and methodological backgrounds, addressing these pressing topics through our shared intellectual and theoretical concerns, while bringing to bear our disciplines and areas of expertise. Participants collectively select, read, and lead discussions on recent, groundbreaking theoretical texts at monthly meetings. The seminar will also incorporate visiting speakers who will be invited to speak about their published work as well as works-in-progress. Meetings are scheduled for February 1, March 1, and April 19 all at 11:30 a.m. Seminar coordinators: Ben Tran (Asian studies), Alex Dubilet (political science), and Haerin Shin (English). 

Critical Approaches to African Studies. This seminar brings together faculty and students from diverse fields across campus to explore cutting-edge topics relating to Africa’s past and present. Reflecting Africa’s long-standing central place in the modern world, the seminar will foreground historical and contemporary experiences of commercial, political, cultural and ecological changes across and beyond the continent. Participants will delve into subthemes such as entrepreneurialism, urban life, religious traditions, violence, and artistic expression. Through engagement with leading scholarship across a range of fields, this workshop invites participants to sharpen their analytical and theoretical approaches to African studies. Meetings are scheduled for January 9, January 23, February 27 featuring Pedro Monaville (history, NYU Abu Dhabi), March 27 featuring Stephen Miescher (history, UCSB) and R. Lane Clark (independent film maker), April 17 all at noon. Seminar coordinators: Moses Ochonu (history), Tasha Rijke-Epstein (history), and Rebecca VanDiver (art history). 

Displacement and the Human Condition. This seminar seeks to lay the groundwork for an interdisciplinary approach to topics of oppression, displacement, and statelessness that increasingly dominate certain strands of social and political philosophy, anthropology, economics, and historical analysis. Alongside these more well-trod paths of analysis, we will think through crises of displacement from literary, philosophical, aesthetic, and historical perspectives. Through the incorporation of narratives of exile, prison writings, and journalistic accounts of modern political events, the seminar also—and perhaps most importantly—emphasizes the need to interrogate and challenge our often-rigid division of academic and non-academic writing. Meeting times are January 22, February 19, March 19, and April 16 all at noon. Seminar coordinators: Sabeen Ahmed (philosophy), Jacob Abell (French and Italian), and Kyle Romero (history).   

East Europe: Critical Engagements. This interdisciplinary seminar explores questions of Eastern Europe, Russia, and Eurasia. Bringing together faculty and graduate students from diverse methodological backgrounds, the seminar explores a range of topics,including distinct East European frameworks of culture; the complexities of empire (both past and present); questions of religion, law, and political authority; socialism and post-socialism; minority rights and mass violence; and Russia’s place in defining scholarly conversations and methods of inquiry. Monthly meetings will consist of a combination of pre-circulated papers from within the group, guest speakers, and shared readings for discussion. Guest speakers include Lilya Kaganovsky (Slavic languages and literature, University of Illinois) on January 22, Allison Schachter (Jewish studies, Vanderbilt University) on March 1, and Emily Baran (history, MTSU) on April 19. A meeting will also be held on February 1. All meetings are at 1:30 p.m. Seminar coordinators: Bradley Gorski (Russian) and Emily Greble (history and East European Studies). 

Film Theory and Visual Culture. This seminar aims to foster dialogue among faculty and graduate students across campus working in film, visual culture, art history, literature, media and cultural studies, as well as anyone interested in theories of the image, philosophies of perception, aesthetics and critical theory, media arts and histories (including sound), and the history of vision.Guest speakers include Samantha Barbas (school of law, SUNY-Buffalo) on January 25, John David Rhodes (European and American cinema, Cambridge University) onFebruary 8, and Akshya Saxena (English, Vanderbilt University)on March 22 all at noon. Seminar coordinators: Jen Fay (cinema and media arts/English), Lutz Koepnik (German/cinema and media arts), and James McFarland (German/cinema and media arts). 

French and Francophone Cultural Studies. The French and Francophone Studies Group brings together faculty and graduate students from across the College of Arts and Science campus to share research, assess ongoing developments in the field, and engage in cross-disciplinary conversations.  This year, we will gather around the central theme of DEATH.  This topic bridges chronological, geographical, and disciplinary divides as we hone our understanding of the ways that culture, genre, and history have shaped representations of death and dying. This groups first meeting date in January is TBD, but others are scheduled for February 7 with special guest Robert Darnton (Carl H. Pforzheimer University Professor, Emeritus University Librarian, Emeritus) at 11:30 a.m., March 27 with special guest Kathryn Edwards (history, University of South Carolina) at 3:00 p.m., and April 11 at 3:00 p.m. Seminar coordinators: Lauren Clay (history) and Holly Tucker (French and Italian). 

Group for Pre-modern Cultural Studies. This seminar will foster interdisciplinary and trans-regional conversations on pre-modern topics. Participants generate connections across the humanities by bringing together faculty, graduate students, and external speakers who are ordinarily separated by disciplinary and geographic boundaries. The group meets monthly to discuss ongoing research by a faculty member or graduate student, recent publications in the field, or the work of a visiting scholar. We welcome all those on campus with interests in the history, cultures, languages, and literatures of the pre-modern world. Meeting are scheduled for February 11 featuring Ashkan Bahrani (history and critical theories of religion, Vanderbilt University), March 28featuring Samuel England (African cultural studies, University of Wisconsin-Madison), and April 11 with Megan Culbertson Bryson (Religious studies, University of Tennessee), each at 12:15 p.m. in the Warren Center.  Seminar coordinators: Elsa Filosa (French & Italian), Bryan Lowe (religious studies) and Samira Sheikh (history). 

Science & Technology Studies Seminar. This interdisciplinary seminar will focus this year on waste in historical and contemporary contexts. Perhaps more than any other category of materials, waste reflects the fraught relationships between humans and the natural world. In this moment of ecological crisis, questions related to waste point to deeper concerns about our collective future, the bounds of human agency, and inequality. Through collective reading, conversations, and on-campus field trips focused on waste as a matter of concern and opportunity, the workshop will bring together theories and methods from science and technology studies, cultural anthropology, history, literature, engineering and environmental management, and historical geography to evaluate how productions and predicaments of waste have shaped everyday life over time. Meeting are scheduled for January 18, February 15, March 15 with special guest Max Liboiron (geography, Memorial University of Newfoundland), March 29 (tentative), and April 26 (tentative) at noon in the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Ashley Carse (HOD, Peabody College), Ole Molvig (history), and Tasha Rijke-Epstein (history). 

Urban Space: Theory, Practices, Representations. This seminar utilizes tools provided by “spatial thinkers” such as Henri Lefebvre, Edward Soja, Neil Smith, and Katherine McKittrick, among others, to explore the ways in which “space is never empty: it always embodies a meaning.” It traces the “spatial turn” in the humanities and social sciences, the reconstituted emphasis on the spatialized social structures of the quotidian, and applies the ideas and concepts of this interpretive lens to the context of black urban spaces. Focusing on urban representations by poets, novelists, essayists, photographers, filmmakers, and painters, it brings together the disciplines of literature, art history, cultural geography, and cinema to frame for critical discussion interrelated and diverging interpretations of historical and contemporary urban spaces. Meetings are scheduled for January 24, February 21, March 14 featuring Richard Douglas Lloyd (sociology, Vanderbilt University), and April 18 in the Warren Center at noon. This seminar is also doing a special free screening of the 1976 Martin Scorsese film Taxi Driveron March 18 in Buttrick 103 from 3:00 to 6:00 p.m. with a small reception following the screening. This and all meetings are open to the public. Seminar coordinators: Thea Autry (English) and Lucy (Soomin) Kim (English). 

2018/2019 Fellows Program. “The World of Print(s): Multiples and Meanings in Early Modern Europe and North America,” co-directed by Mark Hosford (art) and Kevin Murphy (history of art). Participants in the program are José A. Cárdenas Bunsen (Spanish and Portuguese), Patricia Fumerton (English, University of California, Santa Barbara), Jana Harper (art), Paul C. H. Lim (Divinity School and history), and David H. Price (religious studies), and Rebecca K. VanDiver (history of art). 

2018/2019 Warren Center Graduate Student Fellows. Seven graduate students are participating in the Warren Center’s 13th dissertation completion fellowship program. They are Amaryah S. Armstrong (graduate department of religion), Emma L. Banks (anthropology), Iyaxel Cojti Ren (anthropology), Sarah M. Gorman (philosophy), Katherine R. McKenna (history), Lauren A. Mitchell (English), and Kadiri J. Vaquer Fernández (Spanish & Portuguese). Amaryah S. Armstrong is theAmerican Studies Fellow, Sarah M. Gormanis theGeorge J. Graham, Jr. Fellow, Lauren A. Mitchell is theElizabeth E. Fleming Fellow, andKadiri J. Vaquer Fernández is theJoe and Mary Harper Fellow. 

Harry C. Howard Jr. Lecture. Thursday, August 30 2018, 4:10 p.m. in the Vanderbilt Heard Library Community Room, Danielle Allen will discuss her latest book, Cuz: The Life and Times of Michael A., a family memoir regarding the life and tragic death of her cousin. Allen, the James Bryant Conant University Professor at Harvard University and director of the Edmond J. Safra Center for Ethics, is a political theorist who has published broadly in democratic theory, political sociology, and the history of political thought. Widely known for her work on justice and citizenship in both ancient Athens and modern America, among her many publications are Talking to Strangers: Anxieties of Citizenship since Brown vs. the Board of Education (2004), Why Plato Wrote (2010), Our Declaration: A Reading of the Declaration of Independence in Defense of Equality (2014), and Education and Equality(2016). A reception will follow the lecture.  (Rescheduled from original March 2018 date). 

2018 Southern Festival of Books. October 12-14. With Humanities Tennessee, the Warren Center is cosponsoring a dedicated track related to the theme “Democracy and the Informed Citizen.” Programs will examine the relationship between active and productive civic participation and access to information. Confirmed authors include: Loka Ashwood (For-Profit Democracy: Why the Government Is Losing the Trust of Rural America), Ben Fountain, (Beautiful Country Burn Again: Democracy, Rebellion, and Revolution), and Eric Barnes, president of the Tennessee Press Association Board. All events will take place in downtown Nashville. 

Association of Literary Scholars, Critics, and Writers Annual Conference November 1-4, 2018. The Warren Center will participate in a plenary panel entitled “Humanities Centers and the Future of Literary Studies.” Speakers in this session include former Warren Center Fellows Deborah N. Cohn, professor of Spanish and associate director of the College Arts and Humanities Institute, Indiana University, Bloomington; Susan Hegeman, professor of English, University of Florida; and Derrick R. Spires, assistant professor of English, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Cohn was William S. Vaughn Visiting Fellow at the Warren Center in 2000/2001; Hegeman was William S. Vaughn Visiting Fellow in 1996/97. Spires, who earned his Ph.D. at Vanderbilt, was the American Studies Fellow in the Warren Center’s Graduate Student Fellows Program in 2008/2009. Mona Frederick will chair the plenary panel. Kate Daniels, Edwin Mims Professor of English and director of creative writing at Vanderbilt, is vice president of the ALSCW and a member of the conference planning committee. More information about the program is available here: http://alscw.org/events/annual-conference/alscw-2018-conference. 

Harry C. Howard Jr. Lecture. Jon Parrish Peede, April 2, 2019, 4:10 p.m. Vanderbilt Heard Library Community Room. A Vanderbilt University alumnus, Peede is chair of the National Endowment for the Humanities. His previous positions include publisher of the Virginia Quarterly Review (VQR) at the University of Virginia, literature grants director at the National Endowment for the Arts, counselor to NEA Chairman Dana Gioia, director of the NEA Operation Homecoming: Writing the Wartime Experience program, director of the NEA Big Read program, director of communications at Millsaps College, founding editor of Millsaps Magazine, and editor at Mercer University Press with a focus on the humanities.  

The following is a list of seminars and reading groups for the fall semester. For more detailed information please contact the seminar coordinators or the Warren Center. 

18th/19th Century Colloquium. The colloquium brings together faculty, graduate students, and visiting scholars to explore ground-breaking scholarship on the arts, cultures, and histories of the 18th and 19th centuries. While loosely focused around British culture, the group also invites scholars from other linguistic and geographic fields to share work and join in the discussion. Meeting are scheduled for September 28, November 2 featuring Mark Schoenfield (English, Vanderbilt University), and November 30 all at 2:00 p.m. Seminar coordinators: Rachel Teukolsky (English) and Scott Juengel (English). 

American Studies after the American Century. During most of its eighty-year history, the field of American Studies operated against a backdrop of American global preeminence. From World War II through the Cold War to September 11, Americanists defined themselves and their work in relation to the military might, economic affluence, and cultural reach of the United States. While this relationship was frequently antagonistic and critical, it rarely questioned the status of the U.S. as a global hegemonic power. The presidential election of 2016 has fundamentally called this view into question. The corrosion of political norms, the emergence of new political movements, and the country’s retreat from long-held global commitments seem to indicate that the “American Century” has at least symbolically come to an end. What does this mean for scholars working in American Studies today? This seminar will try to formulate some answers to this question by allowing students to present work in progress, by reading current scholarship in the field, and by inviting faculty to engage in discussions about the field’s history and its possible futures. Meeting are being scheduled soon. Seminar coordinators: Alex Korsunsky (anthropology) and Mario Rewers (history). 

Brazilian Studies. In its sixth edition, the Brazilian Studies group will focus on matters of diversity and development, reflecting on issues regarding the socio-political and economic realities of Brazil. The monthly meetings will consist of discussions among both attendees and invited speakers based upon pre-circulated papers concerning their research.  Guests come from a variety of disciplines, such as (but not limited to) history, Latin American studies, sociology, anthropology, and earth and environmental sciences. Meetings are to be scheduled soon. Seminar coordinators: Maria Paula Andrade (history), Alexandre Pelegrino (history), and Jacob C. Brown (Spanish and Portuguese). 

Circum-Atlantic Studies Seminar. The Circum-Atlantic Studies Seminar was launched at the Warren Center in 2001. Seminar participants and invited guests discuss work-in-progress that is interdisciplinary and focused on themes related to Atlantic slavery, colonialism, and/or post colonialism. This research links Africa, Europe, the Americas, and the Caribbean and addresses diverse constituencies on campus. In 2007, as an offshoot of the original seminar, the Warren Center also created a Black Atlantic History Lecture that invites major scholars of the Black Atlantic to campus every February to give a public lecture in honor of Black History Month. This years’ speaker is to be Herman Bennett (history, City University of New York) on February 4, 2019 . Meetings are being scheduled soon.Seminar coordinators: Jane Landers (history) and Celso Castilho (history). 

Contemporary in Theory. Composed of faculty members and graduate students, the Contemporary in Theory seminar examines contemporary issues that range from global capitalism, critical race theories, climate change, digital media and technology, and the definitions and boundaries of the human. The seminar fosters innovative approaches to the contemporary across diverse disciplines and methodological backgrounds, addressing these pressing topics through our shared intellectual and theoretical concerns, while bringing to bear our disciplines and areas of expertise. Participants collectively select, read, and lead discussions on recent, groundbreaking theoretical texts at monthly meetings. The seminar will also incorporate visiting speakers who will be invited to speak about their published work as well as works-in-progress. Meetings are scheduled for September 14, October 12, and November 30 at noon. Seminar coordinators: Ben Tran (Asian studies), Alex Dubilet (political science), and Haerin Shin (English). 

Critical Approaches to African Studies. This seminar brings together faculty and students from diverse fields across the campus to explore cutting-edge topics relating to Africa’s past and present. Reflecting Africa’s long-standing central place in the modern world, the seminar will foreground historical and contemporary experiences of commercial, political, cultural and ecological changes across and beyond the continent. Participants will delve into subthemes such as entrepreneurialism, urban life, religious traditions, violence, and artistic expression. Through engagement with leading scholarship across a range of fields, this workshop invites participants to sharpen their analytical and theoretical approaches to African studies. Meetings are scheduled for September 5, September 19, October 31 featuring Abdulbasit Kassim (religion, Rice University), and November 14 at noon. Seminar coordinators: Moses Ochonu (history), Tasha Rijke-Epstein (history), and Rebecca VanDiver (art history). 

Displacement and the Human Condition. This seminar seeks to lay the groundwork for an interdisciplinary approach to topics of oppression, displacement, and statelessness that increasingly dominate certain strands of social and political philosophy, anthropology, economics, and historical analysis. Alongside these more well-trod paths of analysis, we will think through crises of displacement from literary, philosophical, aesthetic, and historical perspectives. Through the incorporation of narratives of exile, prison writings, and journalistic accounts of modern political events, the seminar also—and perhaps most importantly—emphasizes the need to interrogate and challenge our often-rigid division of academic and non-academic writing. Meeting times are  September  18, October 16, November 13, and December 4 at 11:30 a.m. Seminar coordinators: Sabeen Ahmed (philosophy), Jacob Abell (French and Italian), and Kyle Romero (history).   

East Europe: Critical Engagements. This interdisciplinary seminar explores questions of Eastern Europe, Russia, and Eurasia. Bringing together faculty and graduate students from diverse methodological backgrounds, the seminar explores a range of topics, including distinct East European frameworks of culture; the complexities of empire (both past and present); questions of religion, law, and political authority; socialism and post-socialism; minority rights and mass violence; and Russia’s place in defining scholarly conversations and methods of inquiry. Monthly meetings will consist of a combination of pre-circulated papers from within the group, guest speakers, and shared readings for discussion. Guest speakers include James Robertson (Eastern European Studies, University of California, Irvine) on September 21, Kelly Kolar (history, MTSU) on November 2, and Denis Zhernokleyev (Russian, Vanderbilt University) on December 14 all at 1:30 p.m. Seminar coordinators: Bradley Gorski (Russian) and Emily Greble (history and East European Studies). 

Film Theory and Visual Culture. This seminar aims to foster dialogue among faculty and graduate students across campus working in film, visual culture, art history, literature, media and cultural studies, as well as anyone interested in theories of the image, philosophies of perception, aesthetics and critical theory, media arts and histories (including sound), and the history of vision. Guest speaker Pooja Rangan (cinema & media arts/English, Amherst College) is scheduled on November 16 at noon. Seminar coordinators: Jen Fay (cinema and media arts/English), Lutz Koepnik (German/cinema and media arts), and James McFarland (German/cinema and media arts). 

French and Francophone Cultural Studies. The French and Francophone Studies Group brings together faculty and graduate students from across the College of Arts and Science campus to share research, assess ongoing developments in the field, and engage in cross-disciplinary conversations.  This year, we will gather around the central theme of DEATH. This topic bridges chronological, geographical, and disciplinary divides as we hone our understanding of the ways that culture, genre, and history have shaped representations of death and dying. Meeting times are September 19, October 24, and November 14 at 3:00 p.m. with guest speakers to be announced shortly. Seminar coordinators: Lauren Clay (History) and Holly Tucker (French and Italian). 

Group for Pre-modern Cultural Studies. This seminar will foster interdisciplinary and trans-regional conversations on pre-modern topics. Participants generate connections across the humanities by bringing together faculty, graduate students, and external speakers who are ordinarily separated by disciplinary and geographic boundaries. The group meets monthly to discuss ongoing research by a faculty member or graduate student, recent publications in the field, or the work of a visiting scholar. We welcome all those on campus with interests in the history, cultures, languages, and literatures of the pre-modern world. Meeting are scheduled for September 17, October 15 featuring Tanuja Kothiyal (history, Ambedkar University Delhi), and November 9 with Valerio Cappozzo (Italian, University of Mississippi), each at 12:15 p.m. in the Warren Center.  Seminar coordinators: Elsa Filosa (French & Italian), Bryan Lowe (Religious Studies) and Samira Sheikh (history). 

Science & Technology Studies Seminar. This interdisciplinary seminar will focus this year on waste in historical and contemporary contexts. Perhaps more than any other category of materials, waste reflects the fraught relationships between humans and the natural world. In this moment of ecological crisis, questions related to waste point to deeper concerns about our collective future, the bounds of human agency, and inequality. Through collective reading, conversations, and on-campus field trips focused on waste as a matter of concern and opportunity, the workshop will bring together theories and methods from science and technology studies, cultural anthropology, history, literature, engineering and environmental management, and historical geography to evaluate how productions and predicaments of waste have shaped everyday life over time. Meeting are scheduled for September 28, October 26, and November 28 at noon in the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Ashley Carse (HOD, Peabody College), Ole Molveg (history), and Tasha Rijke-Epstein (history). 

Urban Space: Theory, Practices, Representations. This seminar utilizes tools provided by “spatial thinkers” such as Henri Lefebvre, Edward Soja, Neil Smith, and Katherine McKittrick, among others, to explore the ways in which “space is never empty: it always embodies a meaning.” It traces the “spatial turn” in the humanities and social sciences, the reconstituted emphasis on the spatialized social structures of the quotidian, and applies the ideas and concepts of this interpretive lens to the context of black urban spaces. Focusing on urban representations by poets, novelists, essayists, photographers, filmmakers, and painters, it brings together the disciplines of literature, art history, cultural geography, and cinema to frame for critical discussion interrelated and diverging interpretations of historical and contemporary urban spaces. Meetings are scheduled for September 20, October 11, and November 29 in the Warren Center at noon. Seminar coordinators: Thea Autry (English) and Lucy (Soomin) Kim (English). 

2017/2018 Fellows Program. “Telling Stories: Modes, Media, and Meanings,” co-directed byLaura M. Carpenter (sociology) and Catherine A. Molineux (history). Participants in the program are Ellen Armour (divinity), James F. Brooks (history and anthropology, University of California, Santa Barbara), John Janusek (anthropology), Shaul Kelner (sociology and Jewish studies), Stanley Link (Blair), Letizia Modena (French and Italian), Jonathan Rattner (art, cinema and media arts), and Haerin Shin (English). 

2017/2018 Warren Center Graduate Student Fellows. Seven graduate students are participating in the Warren Center’s 12th dissertation completion fellowship program.  They are Alexandra Alekseyeva (philosophy), Sarah K. Koellner (German, Russian, and East European studies), James Phelan (English), Danielle R. Picard (history), Rachel E. Skaggs (sociology), Wietske M. Smeele (English), and David Vila Dieguez (Spanish and Portuguese). Rachel E. Skaggs is the American Studies Fellow, Alexandra Alekseyeva is the George J. Graham, Jr. Fellow, David Vila Dieguez is the Joe and Mary Harper Fellow, and Wietske M. Smeele is the Elizabeth E. Fleming Fellow. 

2018/2019 Fellows Program. “The World of Print(s): Multiples and Meanings in Early Modern Europe and North America,” co-directed by Mark Hosford (art) and Kevin Murphy (history of art). 

Black Atlantic History Lecture. Monday, February 5, 4:10 p.m. In the Bishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center auditorium, Madison Smartt Bell (English, Goucher College) will deliver the Warren Center’s annual Black Atlantic History Lecture entitled “White Southern Identity and the Haitian Revolution.” The Black Atlantic History Lecture is hosted by the Warren Center’s Circum-Atlantic Studies Seminar, the Center for Latin American Studies, and the Bishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center in honor of Black History Month. 

“Technology and Civil Liberties in the Trump Era.” Thursday, February 8, 4:10 p.m. Buttrick 101. Jay Stanley, senior policy analyst for the Speech, Privacy and Technology Project, American Civil Liberties Union. Respondents: Sarah Igo (history and American studies) and Hedy Weinberg, executive director, American Civil Liberties Union of Tennessee. Sponsored by the ACLU-TN, Program in American Studies, and the Warren Center. 

Harry C. Howard Jr. Lecture. Thursday, March 13, 4:10 p.m. In the Vanderbilt Heard Library Community Room, Danielle Allen will discuss her latest book Cuz: The Life and Times of Michael A., a family memoir regarding the life and tragic death of her cousin. Allen, the James Bryant Conant University Professor at Harvard University and Director of the Edmond J. Safra Center for Ethics, is a political theorist who has published broadly in democratic theory, political sociology, and the history of political thought. Widely known for her work on justice and citizenship in both ancient Athens and modern America, among her many publications are Talking to Strangers: Anxieties of Citizenship since Brown vs. the Board of Education (2004), Why Plato Wrote (2010), Our Declaration: A Reading of the Declaration of Independence in Defense of Equality (2014), and Education and Equality(2016). A reception will follow the lecture. CANCELED DUE TO STORMS. Rescheduled for August 30, 2018. 

“Between the Law and Action: Citizenship in Mexico and the U.S. in the Nineteenth Century.” Tuesday, March 20, 12:10 p.m., Buttrick 123. Speakers will be Peter Guardino (history, Indiana University Bloomington) and Erika Pani (history, Colegio de México). More detailed information will be circulated later this semester.  Co-sponsored by the Center for Latin American Studies and the Warren Center’s Mexican Studies Seminar. Coordinator: Edward Wright-Rios (history).  

The following is a list of seminars and reading groups for the spring semester. For more detailed information please contact the seminar coordinators or the Warren Center. 

18th-/19th-Century Colloquium: The colloquium brings together faculty, graduate students, and visiting scholars to explore ground-breaking scholarship on the arts, cultures, and histories of the 18th and 19th centuries. While loosely focused around British culture, the group also invites scholars from other linguistic and geographic fields to share work and join in the discussion. Guest speakers include William Galperin (English, Rutgers University)on February 23 and Monique Allawaert (English, University of Wisconsin- Madison) on April 6, both at 2:00 p.m. at the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Rachel Teukolsky (English) rachel.teukolsky@vanderbilt.edu and Scott Juengel (English) scott.j.juengel@vanderbilt.edu. 

Brazilian Studies Reading Group: In its fifth edition, the group will focus on increased political instability and deepening social inequalities in Brazil. Monthly meetings consist of discussions among attendees and invited speakers based upon pre-circulated papers that reflect current research related to the topic. Guests come from a variety of disciplines, including—but not limited to—history, anthropology, political science, literature, Latin American studies, international education policy and management, and African diaspora studies. Guest speakers include Jeffrey Lesser (history, Emory University)on February 19 and M. Elizabeth Ginway (Spanish and Portuguese, University of Florida)on March 29, both at noon at the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Jacob Brown (Spanish and Portuguese) jacob.c.brown@vanderbilt.edu, Tiago Maranhão (history) tiago.fernandes.maranhao@vanderbilt.edu, and Kalliopi Samiotou (Spanish and Portuguese) kalliopi.samiotou@vanderbilt.edu. 

Circum-Atlantic Studies Seminar: This group reads and treats scholarship that is interdisciplinary in nature, focuses on at least two of the following regions—Africa, Europe, Latin America, the Caribbean, and North America—and treats some aspect of the trans-Atlantic slave trade, colonialism, and/or postcolonialism.Meetings to be announced soon.Seminar coordinators: Celso Castilho (history) celso.t.castilho@vanderbilt.edu and Jane Landers (history) jane.landers@vanderbilt.edu. 

The Contemporary in Theory Seminar: Faculty and graduate students from different disciplines and methodological backgrounds will collaborate to foster innovative approaches to the contemporary.  Areas of inquiry include global capitalism, the end of ideology, the development of media and technology, and subsequent questions about the definitions and boundaries of the human. Meetings are set for January 26 at noon, February 22 at 11:30, March 16 at noon, April 20 at noon, and April 25 with Seb Franklin (literature, King’s College London) at noon. All meetings will be held at the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Alex Dubilet (English) aleksey.dubilet@vanderbilt.edu, Haerin Shin (English) haerin.shin@vanderbilt.edu, and Ben Tran (Asian studies) ben.tran@vanderbilt.edu. 

The Erotics of Race: This seminar explores various currents within critical race theory and black studies that have focused upon the relationship between structures of racial identification and desire. Thinkers working through the interactions between race and desire demonstrate that material interests—such as wealth, property, capital, and other tangible metrics—are not the only motivating factors behind racial inequality and violence. These theorists argue that discourses of race also produce associations of “identification,” “belonging,” and “obligation,” which, in turn, create and naturalize a social and cultural mythos based around the fiction of biological race. Readings will include Sharon Holland’s The Erotic Life of Racism, texts by Christina Sharpe, and literary non-fiction from writers such as James Baldwin, Audre Lorde, and Elizabeth Alexander. Meetings to be announced soon. Seminar coordinators: Leonard Curry (graduate department of religion) leonard.curry@vanderbilt.edu and Terrell Taylor (English) terrell.a.taylor@vanderbilt.edu. 

Film Theory & Visual Culture Seminar: This seminar aims to foster dialogue among faculty and graduate students across campus working in film, visual culture, art history, literature, and cultural studies interested in theories of the image, philosophies of perception, aesthetic and critical theory, media histories, and the history of vision. The group will meet monthly to discuss readings, share work, and engage the research of invited scholars. Guest speakers include Lisa Gitelman (media, culture, and communication, New York University) on January 19 in Buttrick 123, Marco Abel (English, University of Nebraska—Lincoln) on February 2, Haerin Shin (English) onFebruary 16, and Brian Jacobson (cinema studies and history, University of Toronto) on March 23, all at noon at the Warren Center. Erica Carter (German, King’s College London) will also visit the group on April 9 at 4:10 p.m.at the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Jennifer Fay (cinema & media arts, English) jennifer.m.fay@vanderbilt.edu, Lutz Koepnick (German, cinema & media arts) lutz.koepnick@vanderbilt.edu, and James McFarland (German, Russian & East European studies) james.mcfarland@vanderbilt.edu. 

French/Francophone Cultural Studies Seminar: In this multi-disciplinary seminar, graduate students and faculty from across the College come together to read and discuss new scholarship on the literature, history, art, and politics of France, the (former) French Empire, and the Francophone world. This group will meet several times a semester to read works-in-progress or recent publications and to host guest speakers. Meetings are set for January 22 and March 12 with Rebecca Spang (history, Indiana University Bloomington), both at noon at the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Lauren Clay (history) lauren.clay@vanderbilt.edu and Holly Tucker (French and Italian) holly.tucker@vanderbilt.edu. 

Group for Pre-modern Cultural Studies: The purpose of the group is to serve as a forum for those with interests in pre-modern studies, including not only history, but language and literature, chiefly, though not exclusively, Greek, Hebrew, and Latin, as well as music, art, and culture. The group meets monthly to discuss ongoing research by a faculty member, recent publications in the field, or the work of a visiting scholar. Guest speakers include Suzanne Sutherland (history, Middle Tennessee State University)on February 13, Deann Armstrong (English) on March 14, and Torquil Duthie (Asian languages and cultures, UCLA) on April 13, all at noon at the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Bill Caferro (history) william.p.caferro@vanderbilt.edu, Jessie Hock (English) jessie.hock@vanderbilt.edu, and Bryan D. Lowe (department of religious studies) bryan.lowe@vanderbilt.edu. 

Literature and Law Seminar: This reading group will meet to discuss current approaches, new challenges, and new possibilities that are offered to legal and literary scholars when they use insights from both fields to illuminate their work. The seminar welcomes anyone interested in the many topics now addressed in this field, including the use of obscenity laws to regulate creative work, the representation of law in literature, law as literature, the application of literary methods to legal texts, the challenges of constructing “characters” appropriate to literary and legal settings, and the revitalization of law through reference to humanistic texts and approaches. Deborah Anker (founder and director, Harvard Immigration and Refugee Clinic) will speak with the group on February 12 at 4 p.m. at the Warren Center. Other meetings to be announced soon. Seminar coordinators: Robert Barsky (English, French and Italian, Jewish studies, law) robert.barsky@vanderbilt.edu and Daniel Gervais (French and Italian, law) daniel.gervais@law.vanderbilt.edu. 

Making Knowledge in Early Modern Europe: This seminar focuses on 16th and 17th century epistemological changes that enabled the human body to become more than just an object for analysis but an agent through which experiences are registered and knowledge is created. This group will read and discuss recent scholarly work on scientific treatises and legal cases from early modern England, France, and Italy. Specifically, participants will attend to forensic questions involving bodies that preoccupied early modern courts concerning rape, murder, and allegations of impotence. Ultimately, the politics and ethics of knowledge creation will be at the core of this seminar. Participants will have the opportunity to share works-in-progress and to reflect on the stakes that our research raises for scholarly communities and beyond. Meetings are set for January 30 at noon and April 9 with Valerie Traub (English and women’s studies, University of Michigan), at 11:30 a.m. at the Warren Center. The group will also meet with Valeria Finucci (romance studies, Duke University) on March 19 at 4 p.m. at the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Kirsten Mendoza (English) kirsten.n.mendoza@vanderbilt.edu and Anna Young (history) anna.c.young@vanderbilt.edu. 

Science Studies Seminar: This seminar brings together members of the Vanderbilt community with interests in the humanistic and social studies of science and technology. Activities include sharing works-in-progress, reading recent publications in the field, and hosting invited speakers. Faculty members and graduate students from across the university are welcome. Guest speakers include Ashley Carse (human and organizational development, Peabody College) on February 1 and Mary Terrall (history, UCLA) on March 1, and April 12, all at 12:10 p.m. at the Warren Center. There will also be a meeting with Matthew Klingle (environmental studies, Bowdoin College) on March 13 at The Wond’ry, Room 202, at 12:10 p.m. Seminar coordinators: Ole Molvig (history) ole.molvig@vanderbilt.edu, Tasha Rijke-Epstein (history) tasha.rijke-epstein@vanderbilt.edu, and Alistair Sponsel (history) alistair.sponsel@vanderbilt.edu. 

Sports and Civil Rights Reading Group: This seminar will explore the issue of American civil rights through the lens of sports. Seminar participants will read and discuss works examining themes such as pioneering, protest, exploitation, equality, and triumph in the athletic world and will explore how these themes emanating from the world of sports influenced American society as a whole. Meetings are set for January 24 with Keith Cartwright(journalist) and February 15 with Susan Cahn (history, State University of New York at Buffalo), both at noon at the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Andrew Maraniss (Visiting Scholar and Writer-in-Residence, The Commons) andrewmaraniss@gmail.com; Candice Storey Lee (Associate Vice Chancellor for University Affairs and Deputy Athletic Director)  candice.lee@vanderbilt.edu; and Mona Frederick (Warren Center) mona.frederick@vanderbilt.edu.  

Taking Play Seriously: This group will focus on two questions: what are games and play, and what makes some forms of games and play good, ethically or politically? The group will discuss books that draw on media studies, history, psychology, and neuroscience. Public talks will focus on specialized themes, twice as digital colloquia (lectures and discussions with experts in the field) and once as a panel on exclusion in gaming communities. Meetings are set for January 23, February 27, March 27, and April 17, all at 11:30 a.m. at the Warren Center.Seminar coordinators: Derek Price (German, Russian, and East European studies, comparative media analysis and practice) derek.t.price@vanderbilt.edu and Boomer Trujillo (philosophy) glenn.m.trujillo@vanderbilt.edu. 

2017/2018 Fellows Program. “Telling Stories: Modes, Media, and Meanings,” co-directed byLaura M. Carpenter (sociology) and Catherine A. Molineux (history). Participants in the program are Ellen Armour (divinity), James F. Brooks (history and anthropology, University of California, Santa Barbara), John Janusek (anthropology), Shaul Kelner (sociology and Jewish studies), Stanley Link (Blair), Letizia Modena (French and Italian), Jonathan Rattner (art, cinema and media arts), and Haerin Shin (English). 

2017/2018 Warren Center Graduate Student Fellows. Seven graduate students are participating in the Warren Center’s 12th dissertation completion fellowship program.  They are Alexandra Alekseyeva (philosophy), Sarah K. Koellner (German, Russian, and East European studies), James Phelan (English), Danielle R. Picard (history), Rachel E. Skaggs (sociology), Wietske M. Smeele (English), and David Vila Dieguez (Spanish and Portuguese). Rachel E. Skaggs is the American Studies Fellow, Alexandra Alekseyeva is the George J. Graham, Jr. Fellow, David Vila Dieguez is the Joe and Mary Harper Fellow, and Wietske M. Smeele is the Elizabeth E. Fleming Fellow. 

2018/2019 Fellows Program. “The World of Print(s): Multiples and Meanings in Early Modern Europe and North America,” co-directed by Mark Hosford (art) and Kevin Murphy (history of art). 

The Banjo: A Conversation with Laurent Dubois and Dom Flemons. Thursday, January 26, 4:10 p.m. 206 Alumni Hall. Dubois, the Marcello Lotti Professor of Romance Studies and History at Duke University, is the author of The Banjo: America’s African Instrument (Harvard University Press, 2016).  Flemons, a noted musician as well as a co-founder of the Grammy Award-winning group Carolina Chocolate Drops, pulls from traditions of old time folk music to create new sounds. The program will provide a unique opportunity to listen to a historian and a musician together reflect on the history of the banjo. A reception will follow the conversation. The event is co-sponsored by the Africa at a Crossroads: Challenges and Prospects Program and the Robert Penn Warren Center for the Humanities. 

Scholarship in the Public Square: A Conversation with The Atlantic’s Yoni Appelbaum. Monday, January 30, 4:10 p.m. 206 Alumni Hall. Yoni Appelbaum earned his Ph.D. in U.S. history and taught at Harvard before becoming Senior Editor at The Atlantic, where he oversees the politics section. In this conversation with fellow historian Heath W. Carter he will discuss his journey to The Atlantic and the role of the public intellectual in today’s America. Q & A with the audience to follow. 

Harry C. Howard Jr. Lecture. Thursday, February 2, 4:10 p.m. In the Vanderbilt Heard Library Community Room, Quiara Alegría Hudes will deliver a lecture entitled “A Writer’s Many Selves.” Hudes, a noted playwright, is currently the Shapiro Distinguished Professor of Writing and Theater at Wesleyan University. Her work includes Water by the Spoonful, winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Drama; In the Heights, winner of the Tony Award for Best Musical and Pulitzer finalist; Elliot, A Soldier’s Fugue, another Pulitzer finalist; Daphne’s Dive; The Good Peaches; Miss You Like Hell; and The Happiest Song Plays Last. A reception will follow the lecture. 

Black Atlantic History Lecture. Linda Heywood and John Thornton , Monday, February 6, 4:10 p.m., Bishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center. Both Professors of African American Studies and History at Boston University, Heywood and Thornton will deliver the Warren Center’s annual Black Atlantic History Lecture entitled “The Strategic Diplomacy of Queen Njinga: Written, Spoken and Performed.” The Black Atlantic History Lecture is hosted by the Warren Center’s Circum-Atlantic Studies Seminar, the Center for Latin American Studies, and the Bishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center in honor of Black History Month. A reception will follow the lecture. 

Kristen Green, “Something Must Be Done about Prince Edward County:  A Family, a Virginia Town, a Civil Rights Battle,” Monday, February 20, 4:10 p.m., Bishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center.  Green is the author of the critically-acclaimed book of the same title about a Virginia community that defied the Supreme Court’s Brown v. Board of Education ruling. When ordered by a federal court to desegregate the public schools in 1959, white leaders instead chose to close them and public schools remained closed in the county until 1964. Green’s book tells the story of these events and the long-term impact on her hometown. The event is co-sponsored by the Bishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center and the Robert Penn Warren Center. A reception will follow the program. 

Warren Center Graduate Student Fellows Lectures. This spring, each of the Warren Center’s eight graduate student fellows will present a public lecture on his or her research. All lectures take place in the conference room of the Warren Center at 4:10 p.m. and are followed by a reception. The presenters and dates are: Michael Purvis (Modern Languages, Queen’s University Belfast), March 20; Scotti Norman (anthropology), April 4; Lance Ingwersen (history), April 13; Allison McGrath (sociology), April 14; Kanetha Wilson (sociology), April 18; Tatiana McInnis (English), April 20; Tim Foster (Spanish and Portuguese), April 24; and Shelby Johnson (English), April 27.  

The following is a list of seminars and reading groups for the spring semester. For more detailed information please contact the seminar coordinators or the Warren Center. 

18th-/19th-Century Colloquium: The colloquium brings together faculty, graduate students, and visiting scholars to explore ground-breaking scholarship on the arts, cultures, and histories of the 18th- and 19th-centuries. While loosely focused around British culture, the group also invites scholars from other linguistic and geographic fields to share work and join in the discussion. Guest speakers include Elizabeth Miller (English, University of California—­­Davis)on Friday, January 27 at 2:00 p.m. and Anahid Nersessian (English, University of California—Los Angeles) on Friday, March 24, at 12:00 p.m. at the Warren Center.Seminar coordinators: Rachel Teukolsky (English) rachel.teukolsky@vanderbilt.edu and Scott Juengel (English) scott.j.juengel@vanderbilt.edu. 

Brazilian Studies Reading Group: In its fourth edition, the group will focus on increased political instability and deepening social inequalities in Brazil. Monthly meetings consist of discussions among attendees and invited speakers based upon pre-circulated papers that reflect current research related to the topic. Guests come from a variety of disciplines, including—but not limited to—history, anthropology, political science, literature, Latin American studies, international education policy and management, and African diaspora studies. Meetings to be announced soon. Seminar coordinators: Cory Weaver (Latin American Studies) david.c.weaver@vanderbilt.edu, Tiago Maranhão (history)tiago.fernandes.maranhao@vanderbilt.edu, and Kalliopi Samiotou (Spanish and Portuguese) kalliopi.samiotou@vanderbilt.edu. 

Circum-Atlantic Studies Seminar: This group reads and treats scholarship that is interdisciplinary in nature, focuses on at least two of the following regions—Africa, Europe, Latin America, the Caribbean, and North America—and treats some aspect of the trans-Atlantic slave trade, colonialism, and/or postcolonialism. Guest speakers include Teresa Cribelli (history, University of Alabama) on Thursday, January 26at 12:00 p.m. in 301 Garland Hall and David LaFevor (history, University of Texas—Arlington), date and time TBA. Seminar coordinators: Celso Castilho (history) celso.t.castilho@vanderbilt.edu and Jane Landers (history) jane.landers@vanderbilt.edu. 

The Contemporary in Theory Seminar: Faculty and graduate students from different disciplines and methodological backgrounds will collaborate to foster innovative approaches to the contemporary.  Areas of inquiry include global capitalism, the end of ideology, the development of media and technology, and subsequent questions about the definitions and boundaries of the human. Meetings are set for February 10, March 1, March 31 and April 28 all at noon at the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Ben Tran (Asian Studies) ben.tran@vanderbilt.edu and Alex Dubilet (English) aleksey.dubilet@vanderbilt.edu. 

Film Theory & Visual Culture Seminar: This seminar aims to foster dialogue among faculty and graduate students across campus working in film, visual culture, art history, literature, and cultural studies interested in theories of the image, philosophies of perception, aesthetic and critical theory, media histories, and the history of vision. The group will meet monthly to discuss readings, share work, and engage the research of invited scholars. Guest speakers include Jean Ma (art & art history, Stanford), on February 3, Karl Schoonover (film & television studies, University of Warwick) on March 17, and Sara Blair (English, University of Michigan) on April 7, all at noon at the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Jennifer Fay (cinema & media arts, English) jennifer.m.fay@vanderbilt.edu and Lutz Koepnick (German, cinema & media arts) lutz.koepnick@vanderbilt.edu. 

Gender and Sexualities Seminar: This seminar provides an interdisciplinary forum for the development of critical perspectives on gender and sexuality. The seminar examines how gender and sexuality shape human experience within and across cultures, in different time periods, and as part of social practice. Participants will choose the format with an aim toward balancing new scholarship by graduate students and established scholars, as well as exploring topics of particular interest to the group. Meetings are set for Fridays, January 13with Kimberly Welch (history), February 24 with Stacey Simplican (women’s and gender studies), March 17 with Alexis Wells-Oghoghomeh (religious studies),  and April 21with Carwill Bjork-James all at 12:30 p.m. at the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Katherine Crawford (women’s and gender studies) katherine.b.crawford@vanderbilt.edu and Melanie Adley (women’s and gender studies) m.adley@vanderbilt.edu. 

Group for Pre-modern Cultural Studies: The purpose of the group is to serve as a forum for those with interests in pre-modern studies, including not only history, but language and literature, chiefly, though not exclusively, Greek, Hebrew, and Latin, as well as music, art, and culture. The group meets monthly to discuss ongoing research by a faculty member, recent publications in the field, or the work of a visiting scholar. They will be holding a Classical Reception Roundtableon Wednesday, January 25at 4:00 p.m. in Buttrick 123. Participants are Lynn Enterline (English), Elsa Filosa (French and Italian), Kathy Gaca (classics and Mediterranean studies), Choon-leong Seow (divinity), and Betsey Robinson (art history). Other guest speakers include Elizabeth Moodey (history of art)on February 15, Bill Engel (English, University of the South) on February 24, and Melissa Sanchez (English, University of Pennsylvania) on March 22, all at noon at the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Bill Caferro (history) william.p.caferro@vanderbilt.edu and Jessie Hock (English) jessie.hock@vanderbilt.edu. 

Literature and Law Seminar: This reading group will meet to discuss current approaches, new challenges, and new possibilities that are offered to legal and literary scholars when they use insights from both fields to illuminate their work. The seminar welcomes anyone interested in the many topics now addressed in this field, including the use of obscenity laws to regulate creative work, the representation of law in literature, law as literature, the application of literary methods to legal texts, the challenges of constructing “characters” appropriate to literary and legal settings, and the revitalization of law through reference to humanistic texts and approaches. Guest speakers include Gabriella Sanchez (security studies, University of Texas—El Paso) on February 13, Ari Bryen (Mediterranean and classical studies) on March 3, David Maraniss (political science) on March 30, Sarah Koellner (German) on April 7, all at 4:00 at the Warren Center. Other speakers include Kristina Touzenis (International Organization for Migration) on March 20, in Buttrick 123 at 4 p.m and Julius Grey (law, McGill University) on April 12, at 5 p.m. at the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Robert Barsky (French and Italian) robert.barsky@vanderbilt.edu and Daniel Gervais (law) daniel.gervais@law.vanderbilt.edu. 

Marx: Foundations and Contemporary Applications: This seminar brings together faculty and graduate students from across campus to explore central Marxist concepts by tracing a path from their inception, through some of the most enduring responses and reworkings, to their most recent applications. Beginning with Karl Marx’s own work, the seminar will examine the way in which Marxist conceptual frameworks have travelled across time and disciplinary boundaries. Readings will include selections from Karl Marx’s Capital, Francis Fukuyama’s The End of History and the Last Man, Jacques Derrida’s Specters of Marx, Fredric Jameson’s An American Utopia, and various texts to be determined by the interests of the group. Meetings are set for Thursdays, January 19, February 9, March 2, March 23 and April 13, all at noon at the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Kira Braham (English) kira.r.braham@vanderbilt.edu and Kylie Korsnack (English) kylie.j.korsnack@vanderbilt.edu. 

Reading Between the Sheets: Sex, Desire and the Erotic: This multi-disciplinary seminar will explore the embodied, lived experiences of sex and sexuality through monthly readings and discussions. Possible topics include, but are not limited to: desire; pleasure; consent; kink/BDSM; the orgasm; the politics of talking about sex with young people and sex education; sex and difference; sex, ability and disability. Guest speaker Cricket Keating (women’s and gender studies, University of Washington) will present on February 17 at 2:30 p.m. at the Warren Center. Other meetings to be announced soon. Seminar coordinators: Elizabeth Lanphier (philosophy) e.lanphier.barone@vanderbilt.edu and Leah Roberts (human and organizational development, Peabody College) leah.m.roberts@vanderbilt.edu.  

Science Studies Seminar: This seminar brings together members of the Vanderbilt community with interests in the humanistic and social studies of science and technology. Activities include sharing work-in-progress, reading recent publications in the field, and hosting invited speakers. Faculty members and graduate students from across the university are welcome. Meetings to be announced soon. Seminar coordinators: Ole Molvig (history) ole.molvig@vanderbilt.eduand Alistair Sponsel (history) alistair.sponsel@vanderbilt.edu.  

2016/2017 Fellows Program. “Working for Equality and Justice: Theorizing from and with Lived Resistance to Economic Inequality and Injustice,”co-directed by Brooke A. Ackerly (political science) and C. Melissa Snarr (ethics and society, Divinity School). Participants in the program are Carwil Bjork-James (anthropology), Heath W. Carter (William S. Vaughn Visiting Fellow, history), James C. Fraser (human and organizational development, Peabody College), Juan Floyd-Thomas (African-American religious history, Divinity School), Kathy L. Gaca (classical studies), and N. Michelle Murray (Spanish and Portuguese).   

2016/2017 Warren Center Graduate Student Fellows. Eight graduate students are participating in the Warren Center’s 11th dissertation completion fellowship program.  They are Timothy M. Foster (Spanish and Portuguese), Lance R. Ingwersen (history), Shelby L. Johnson (English), Allison R. McGrath (sociology), Tatiana McInnis (English), Scotti M. Norman (anthropology), Michael W. Purvis (modern languages, Queens University Belfast), and Kanetha B. Wilson (sociology). Shelby L. Johnson is the American Studies Fellow, Lance R. Ingwersen is the George J. Graham, Jr. Fellow,Timothy M. Foster is the Joe and Mary Harper Fellow, and Tatiana McInnis is the Elizabeth E. Fleming Fellow. 

2017/2018 Fellows Program. “Telling Stories: Modes, Media, and Meanings,” co-directed byLaura M. Carpenter (sociology) and Catherine A. Molineux (history). 

The Banjo: A Conversation with Laurent Dubois and Dom Flemons. Thursday, January 26, 4:10 p.m. 206 Alumni Hall. Dubois, the Marcello Lotti Professor of Romance Studies and History at Duke University, is the author of The Banjo: America’s African Instrument (Harvard University Press, 2016).  Flemons, a noted musician as well as a co-founder of the Grammy Award-winning group Carolina Chocolate Drops, pulls from traditions of old time folk music to create new sounds. The program will provide a unique opportunity to listen to a historian and a musician together reflect on the history of the banjo. A reception will follow the conversation. The event is co-sponsored by the Africa at a Crossroads: Challenges and Prospects Program and the Robert Penn Warren Center for the Humanities. 

Scholarship in the Public Square: A Conversation with The Atlantic’s Yoni Appelbaum. Monday, January 30, 4:10 p.m. 206 Alumni Hall. Yoni Appelbaum earned his Ph.D. in U.S. history and taught at Harvard before becoming Senior Editor at The Atlantic, where he oversees the politics section. In this conversation with fellow historian Heath W. Carter he will discuss his journey to The Atlantic and the role of the public intellectual in today’s America. Q & A with the audience to follow. 

Harry C. Howard Jr. Lecture. Thursday, February 2, 4:10 p.m. In the Vanderbilt Heard Library Community Room, Quiara Alegría Hudes will deliver a lecture entitled “A Writer’s Many Selves.” Hudes, a noted playwright, is currently the Shapiro Distinguished Professor of Writing and Theater at Wesleyan University. Her work includes Water by the Spoonful, winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Drama; In the Heights, winner of the Tony Award for Best Musical and Pulitzer finalist; Elliot, A Soldier’s Fugue, another Pulitzer finalist; Daphne’s Dive; The Good Peaches; Miss You Like Hell; and The Happiest Song Plays Last. A reception will follow the lecture. 

Black Atlantic History Lecture. Linda Heywood and John Thornton , Monday, February 6, 4:10 p.m., Bishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center. Both Professors of African American Studies and History at Boston University, Heywood and Thornton will deliver the Warren Center’s annual Black Atlantic History Lecture entitled “The Strategic Diplomacy of Queen Njinga: Written, Spoken and Performed.” The Black Atlantic History Lecture is hosted by the Warren Center’s Circum-Atlantic Studies Seminar, the Center for Latin American Studies, and the Bishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center in honor of Black History Month. A reception will follow the lecture. 

Kristen Green, “Something Must Be Done about Prince Edward County:  A Family, a Virginia Town, a Civil Rights Battle,” Monday, February 20, 4:10 p.m., Bishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center.  Green is the author of the critically-acclaimed book of the same title about a Virginia community that defied the Supreme Court’s Brown v. Board of Education ruling. When ordered by a federal court to desegregate the public schools in 1959, white leaders instead chose to close them and public schools remained closed in the county until 1964. Green’s book tells the story of these events and the long-term impact on her hometown. The event is co-sponsored by the Bishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center and the Robert Penn Warren Center. A reception will follow the program. 

Warren Center Graduate Student Fellows Lectures. This spring, each of the Warren Center’s eight graduate student fellows will present a public lecture on his or her research. All lectures take place in the conference room of the Warren Center at 4:10 p.m. and are followed by a reception. The presenters and dates are: Michael Purvis (Modern Languages, Queen’s University Belfast), March 20; Scotti Norman (anthropology), April 4; Lance Ingwersen (history), April 13; Allison McGrath (sociology), April 14; Kanetha Wilson (sociology), April 18; Tatiana McInnis (English), April 20; Tim Foster (Spanish and Portuguese), April 24; and Shelby Johnson (English), April 27.  

The following is a list of seminars and reading groups for the spring semester. For more detailed information please contact the seminar coordinators or the Warren Center. 

18th-/19th-Century Colloquium: The colloquium brings together faculty, graduate students, and visiting scholars to explore ground-breaking scholarship on the arts, cultures, and histories of the 18th- and 19th-centuries. While loosely focused around British culture, the group also invites scholars from other linguistic and geographic fields to share work and join in the discussion. Guest speakers include Elizabeth Miller (English, University of California—­­Davis)on Friday, January 27 at 2:00 p.m. and Anahid Nersessian (English, University of California—Los Angeles) on Friday, March 24, at 12:00 p.m. at the Warren Center.Seminar coordinators: Rachel Teukolsky (English) rachel.teukolsky@vanderbilt.edu and Scott Juengel (English) scott.j.juengel@vanderbilt.edu. 

Brazilian Studies Reading Group: In its fourth edition, the group will focus on increased political instability and deepening social inequalities in Brazil. Monthly meetings consist of discussions among attendees and invited speakers based upon pre-circulated papers that reflect current research related to the topic. Guests come from a variety of disciplines, including—but not limited to—history, anthropology, political science, literature, Latin American studies, international education policy and management, and African diaspora studies. Meetings to be announced soon. Seminar coordinators: Cory Weaver (Latin American Studies) david.c.weaver@vanderbilt.edu, Tiago Maranhão (history)tiago.fernandes.maranhao@vanderbilt.edu, and Kalliopi Samiotou (Spanish and Portuguese) kalliopi.samiotou@vanderbilt.edu. 

Circum-Atlantic Studies Seminar: This group reads and treats scholarship that is interdisciplinary in nature, focuses on at least two of the following regions—Africa, Europe, Latin America, the Caribbean, and North America—and treats some aspect of the trans-Atlantic slave trade, colonialism, and/or postcolonialism. Guest speakers include Teresa Cribelli (history, University of Alabama) on Thursday, January 26at 12:00 p.m. in 301 Garland Hall and David LaFevor (history, University of Texas—Arlington), date and time TBA. Seminar coordinators: Celso Castilho (history) celso.t.castilho@vanderbilt.edu and Jane Landers (history) jane.landers@vanderbilt.edu. 

The Contemporary in Theory Seminar: Faculty and graduate students from different disciplines and methodological backgrounds will collaborate to foster innovative approaches to the contemporary.  Areas of inquiry include global capitalism, the end of ideology, the development of media and technology, and subsequent questions about the definitions and boundaries of the human. Meetings are set for February 10, March 1, March 31 and April 28 all at noon at the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Ben Tran (Asian Studies) ben.tran@vanderbilt.edu and Alex Dubilet (English) aleksey.dubilet@vanderbilt.edu. 

Film Theory & Visual Culture Seminar: This seminar aims to foster dialogue among faculty and graduate students across campus working in film, visual culture, art history, literature, and cultural studies interested in theories of the image, philosophies of perception, aesthetic and critical theory, media histories, and the history of vision. The group will meet monthly to discuss readings, share work, and engage the research of invited scholars. Guest speakers include Jean Ma (art & art history, Stanford), on February 3, Karl Schoonover (film & television studies, University of Warwick) on March 17, and Sara Blair (English, University of Michigan) on April 7, all at noon at the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Jennifer Fay (cinema & media arts, English) jennifer.m.fay@vanderbilt.edu and Lutz Koepnick (German, cinema & media arts) lutz.koepnick@vanderbilt.edu. 

Gender and Sexualities Seminar: This seminar provides an interdisciplinary forum for the development of critical perspectives on gender and sexuality. The seminar examines how gender and sexuality shape human experience within and across cultures, in different time periods, and as part of social practice. Participants will choose the format with an aim toward balancing new scholarship by graduate students and established scholars, as well as exploring topics of particular interest to the group. Meetings are set for Fridays, January 13with Kimberly Welch (history), February 24 with Stacey Simplican (women’s and gender studies), March 17 with Alexis Wells-Oghoghomeh (religious studies),  and April 21with Carwill Bjork-James all at 12:30 p.m. at the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Katherine Crawford (women’s and gender studies) katherine.b.crawford@vanderbilt.edu and Melanie Adley (women’s and gender studies) m.adley@vanderbilt.edu. 

Group for Pre-modern Cultural Studies: The purpose of the group is to serve as a forum for those with interests in pre-modern studies, including not only history, but language and literature, chiefly, though not exclusively, Greek, Hebrew, and Latin, as well as music, art, and culture. The group meets monthly to discuss ongoing research by a faculty member, recent publications in the field, or the work of a visiting scholar. They will be holding a Classical Reception Roundtableon Wednesday, January 25at 4:00 p.m. in Buttrick 123. Participants are Lynn Enterline (English), Elsa Filosa (French and Italian), Kathy Gaca (classics and Mediterranean studies), Choon-leong Seow (divinity), and Betsey Robinson (art history). Other guest speakers include Elizabeth Moodey (history of art)on February 15, Bill Engel (English, University of the South) on February 24, and Melissa Sanchez (English, University of Pennsylvania) on March 22, all at noon at the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Bill Caferro (history) william.p.caferro@vanderbilt.edu and Jessie Hock (English) jessie.hock@vanderbilt.edu. 

Literature and Law Seminar: This reading group will meet to discuss current approaches, new challenges, and new possibilities that are offered to legal and literary scholars when they use insights from both fields to illuminate their work. The seminar welcomes anyone interested in the many topics now addressed in this field, including the use of obscenity laws to regulate creative work, the representation of law in literature, law as literature, the application of literary methods to legal texts, the challenges of constructing “characters” appropriate to literary and legal settings, and the revitalization of law through reference to humanistic texts and approaches. Guest speakers include Gabriella Sanchez (security studies, University of Texas—El Paso) on February 13, Ari Bryen (Mediterranean and classical studies) on March 3, David Maraniss (political science) on March 30, Sarah Koellner (German) on April 7, all at 4:00 at the Warren Center. Other speakers include Kristina Touzenis (International Organization for Migration) on March 20, in Buttrick 123 at 4 p.m and Julius Grey (law, McGill University) on April 12, at 5 p.m. at the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Robert Barsky (French and Italian) robert.barsky@vanderbilt.edu and Daniel Gervais (law) daniel.gervais@law.vanderbilt.edu. 

Marx: Foundations and Contemporary Applications: This seminar brings together faculty and graduate students from across campus to explore central Marxist concepts by tracing a path from their inception, through some of the most enduring responses and reworkings, to their most recent applications. Beginning with Karl Marx’s own work, the seminar will examine the way in which Marxist conceptual frameworks have travelled across time and disciplinary boundaries. Readings will include selections from Karl Marx’s Capital, Francis Fukuyama’s The End of History and the Last Man, Jacques Derrida’s Specters of Marx, Fredric Jameson’s An American Utopia, and various texts to be determined by the interests of the group. Meetings are set for Thursdays, January 19, February 9, March 2, March 23 and April 13, all at noon at the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Kira Braham (English) kira.r.braham@vanderbilt.edu and Kylie Korsnack (English) kylie.j.korsnack@vanderbilt.edu. 

Reading Between the Sheets: Sex, Desire and the Erotic: This multi-disciplinary seminar will explore the embodied, lived experiences of sex and sexuality through monthly readings and discussions. Possible topics include, but are not limited to: desire; pleasure; consent; kink/BDSM; the orgasm; the politics of talking about sex with young people and sex education; sex and difference; sex, ability and disability. Guest speaker Cricket Keating (women’s and gender studies, University of Washington) will present on February 17 at 2:30 p.m. at the Warren Center. Other meetings to be announced soon. Seminar coordinators: Elizabeth Lanphier (philosophy) e.lanphier.barone@vanderbilt.edu and Leah Roberts (human and organizational development, Peabody College) leah.m.roberts@vanderbilt.edu.  

Science Studies Seminar: This seminar brings together members of the Vanderbilt community with interests in the humanistic and social studies of science and technology. Activities include sharing work-in-progress, reading recent publications in the field, and hosting invited speakers. Faculty members and graduate students from across the university are welcome. Meetings to be announced soon. Seminar coordinators: Ole Molvig (history) ole.molvig@vanderbilt.eduand Alistair Sponsel (history) alistair.sponsel@vanderbilt.edu.  

2016/2017 Fellows Program. “Working for Equality and Justice: Theorizing from and with Lived Resistance to Economic Inequality and Injustice,”co-directed by Brooke A. Ackerly (political science) and C. Melissa Snarr (ethics and society, Divinity School). Participants in the program are Carwil Bjork-James (anthropology), Heath W. Carter (William S. Vaughn Visiting Fellow, history), James C. Fraser (human and organizational development, Peabody College), Juan Floyd-Thomas (African-American religious history, Divinity School), Kathy L. Gaca (classical studies), and N. Michelle Murray (Spanish and Portuguese).   

2016/2017 Warren Center Graduate Student Fellows. Eight graduate students are participating in the Warren Center’s 11th dissertation completion fellowship program.  They are Timothy M. Foster (Spanish and Portuguese), Lance R. Ingwersen (history), Shelby L. Johnson (English), Allison R. McGrath (sociology), Tatiana McInnis (English), Scotti M. Norman (anthropology), Michael W. Purvis (modern languages, Queens University Belfast), and Kanetha B. Wilson (sociology). Shelby L. Johnson is the American Studies Fellow, Lance R. Ingwersen is the George J. Graham, Jr. Fellow, Timothy M. Foster is the Joe and Mary Harper Fellow, and Tatiana McInnis is the Elizabeth E. Fleming Fellow. 

2017/2018 Fellows Program. “Telling Stories: Modes, Media, and Meanings,” co-directed byLaura M. Carpenter (sociology) and Catherine A. Molineux (history). 

Paul Ell (Queen’s University, Belfast). On Friday, September 9 at­­ 2:30 p.m. at the Warren Center Paul Ell will give a talk titled “Humanities Geographical Information Systems, digital data, augmented and Virtual Reality, 3D Visualizations: Changing research agendas?” Paul S. Ell is founding director of the Centre for Data Digitisation and Analysis in the School of Natural and Built Environments at Queen’s University Belfast. The Centre was formed in 1999 making it one of the oldest Digital Humanities Centers in the world. This event is co-sponsored by the new Vanderbilt Digital Humanities Center and the Robert Penn Warren Center for the Humanities. 

Southern Festival of Books. The2016 Southern Festival of Books will be held October 13-15 in downtown Nashville. As part of its continuing partnership with Humanities Tennessee, the Robert Penn Warren Center for the Humanities is co-sponsoring a series of speakers related to the Pulitzer Prize, which celebrates its 100th anniversary this year.  The Warren Center will cosponsor a series of speakers at the book festival who will either be discussing topics related to the Pulitzer Prize or who are former Pulitzer Prize winners themselves. Annette Gordon-Read, winner of the Pulitzer Prize for The Hemingses of Monticello: An American Family and 2015 winners in Breaking News Photography, Robert Cohen and David Carson, will be among the speakers. 

The Humanities and Technology Camp (THATCamp). The fifth annual THATCamp will be held on October 28 from 4:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. in Buttrick Atrium and October 29 from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at the Curb Center for Art, Enterprise & Public Policy. Amanda Visconti (Assistant Professor, Libraries, and Digital Humanities Specialist at Purdue University) will be the keynote speaker. THATCamp is an international program designed to promote interest in and to develop skills related to digital humanities. Examples of sessions might include: TEI (Text Encoding Initiative), digital archiving, video games, 3D modeling, Twitter, tools for beginners, securing funding for digital humanities projects, Omeka, and Neatline. THATCamp is hosted by Vanderbilt’s new Digital Humanities Center, the Warren Center, the Center for Second Language Studies, the Vanderbilt Institute for Digital Learning, the Center for Teaching, the Curb Center for Art, Enterprise & Public Policy, and the Jean & Alexander Heard Library. 

The Creative Writing Progam and the Warren Center present Noah Warren, Wallace Stegner Fellow, Stanford University and 2015 Yale Younger Poets Winner. Warren will read from his most recent book of poetry entitled The Destroyer in the Glass on November 1 at 7:00 p.m. in Buttrick 101. Co-sponsored by the Creative Writing Program’s Gertrude and Harold Sterling Visiting Writer Series. 

Fort Negley: A Symbol of the Struggle for Civil Rights in Nashville. On November 5 The Tennessee Historical Society, the Fort Negley Visitors Center and Park, and the Robert Penn Warren Center will host a one-day program at Fort Negley Visitors Center.  The program is intended to draw attention to the role that the fort has played in the lives of African Americans in Nashville as both a very tangible site for freedom during the U.S. Civil War, and now as an enduring emblem for the fight for justice and equality over many generations. This event will feature a panel of speakers and is open to the public. 

The following is a list of seminars and reading groups for the fall semester. For more detailed information please contact the seminar coordinators or the Warren Center. 

18th-/19th-Century Colloquium: The colloquium brings together faculty, graduate students, and visiting scholars to explore ground-breaking scholarship on the arts, cultures, and histories of the 18th- and 19th-centuries. While loosely focused around British culture, the group also invites scholars from other linguistic and geographic fields to share work and join in the discussion. Guest speakers include Seth Koven (history, Rutgers University)on Friday, September 30 and Orrin Wang (English, University of Maryland) on Friday, October 28, both at 2:00 p.m. at the Warren Center.Seminar coordinators: Rachel Teukolsky (English) rachel.teukolsky@vanderbilt.edu and Scott Juengel (English) scott.j.juengel@vanderbilt.edu. 

Brazilian Studies Reading Group: In its fourth edition, the group will focus on increased political instability and deepening social inequalities in Brazil. Monthly meetings consist of discussions among attendees and invited speakers based upon pre-circulated papers that reflect current research related to the topic. Guests come from a variety of disciplines, including—but not limited to—history, anthropology, political science, literature, Latin American studies, international education policy and management, and African diaspora studies. Guest speakers include Celso Castilho (history, Vanderbilt University) on September 30 at noon at the Warren Center and Katrina Dodson (author and translator) on Monday, October 24 (location TBD). More to be announced soon. Seminar coordinators: Cory Weaver (Latin American Studies) david.c.weaver@vanderbilt.edu, Tiago Maranhão (history) tiago.fernandes.maranhao@vanderbilt.edu, and Kalliopi Samiotou (Spanish and Portuguese) kalliopi.samiotou@vanderbilt.edu. 

Circum-Atlantic Studies Seminar: This group reads and treats scholarship that is interdisciplinary in nature, focuses on at least two of the following regions –Africa, Europe, Latin America, the Caribbean, and North America—and treats some aspect of the trans-Atlantic slave trade, colonialism, and/or postcolonialism. Guest speakers include Pablo Gómez (history of science, University of Wisconsin, Madison) on October 27at 1:00 p.m. in Buttrick 123 and David LaFevor (history, University of Texas, Arlington), date and time TBA. Seminar coordinators: Celso Castilho (history) celso.t.castilho@vanderbilt.edu and Jane Landers (history) jane.landers@vanderbilt.edu. 

The Contemporary in Theory Seminar: Faculty and graduate students from different disciplines and methodological backgrounds will collaborate to foster innovative approaches to the contemporary.  Areas of inquiry include global capitalism, the end of ideology, the development of media and technology, and subsequent questions about the definitions and boundaries of the human. Meetings are set for Fridays, September 23, October 21, November 16, and December 9,all at noon at the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Ben Tran (Asian Studies) ben.tran@vanderbilt.edu and Alex Dubilet (English) aleksey.dubilet@vanderbilt.edu. 

Environmental Humanities: This working group brings together faculty and graduate students in the humanities and creative arts, the social sciences, the natural sciences, engineering, and law to study and forge robust interdisciplinary approaches to ecological issues. Through shared readings and research as well as collaborative projects, the group will explore the conjunctions and conflicts between scientific, social, cultural, creative, philosophical, political, and legal understandings of and engagement with the environment. The seminar seeks to foster new models for how humanistic inquiry can shape ecological questions, both inside and outside of the humanities, as well as participate in public discourse about urgent environmental problems. Meetings to be announced soon. Seminar coordinators: Teresa Goddu (English) teresa.a.goddu@vanderbilt.edu and Catherine Molineux (history) catherine.a.molineux@vanderbilt.edu.  

Film Theory & Visual Culture Seminar: This seminar aims to foster dialogue among faculty and graduate students across campus working in film, visual culture, art history, literature, and cultural studies interested in theories of the image, philosophies of perception, aesthetic and critical theory, media histories, and the history of vision. The group will meet monthly to discuss readings, share work, and engage the research of invited scholars. Guest speakers include Johannes von Moltke (German, University of Michigan), on September 9, Davide Panagia (political science, UCLA) on October 7, and Lutz Koepnick (German and cinema & media arts, Vanderbilt) on December 2, all at noon at the Warren Center,and Laura Mulvey (film and media studies, Birkbeck, University of London) on November 10 at 2:00 p.m. at the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Jennifer Fay (cinema & media arts, English) jennifer.m.fay@vanderbilt.eduand Lutz Koepnick (German, cinema & media arts) lutz.koepnick@vanderbilt.edu. 

Gender and Sexualities Seminar: This seminar provides an interdisciplinary forum for the development of critical perspectives on gender and sexuality. The seminar examines how gender and sexuality shape human experience within and across cultures, in different time periods, and as part of social practice. Participants will choose the format with an aim toward balancing new scholarship by graduate students and established scholars, as well as exploring topics of particular interest to the group. Meetings are set for Fridays, September 2with Sandra Barnes (human development), October 28 with Michelle Murray (Spanish and Portuguese), November 4 with Patrick Grzanka (psychology, University of Tennessee, Knoxville), all at 12:30 p.m. at the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Katherine Crawford (women’s and gender studies) katherine.b.crawford@vanderbilt.edu and Melanie Adley (women’s and gender studies) m.adley@vanderbilt.edu. 

Group for Pre-modern Cultural Studies: The purpose of the group is to serve as a forum for those with interests in pre-modern studies, including not only history, but language and literature, chiefly, though not exclusively, Greek, Hebrew, and Latin, as well as music, art, and culture. The group meets monthly to discuss ongoing research by a faculty member, recent publications in the field, or the work of a visiting scholar. Guest speakers include Paul Fischer (religion, Western Kentucky University)on September 16th at noon in Buttrick 123, and Jane O. Newman (comparative literature, UC, Irvine) on November 11th at noon at the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Bill Caferro (history) william.p.caferro@vanderbilt.edu and Jesse Hock (English) jesse.hock@vanderbilt.edu. 

Literature and Law Seminar: This reading group will meet to discuss current approaches, new challenges, and new possibilities that are offered to legal and literary scholars when they use insights from both fields to illuminate their work. The seminar welcomes anyone interested in the many topics now addressed in this field, including the use of obscenity laws to regulate creative work, the representation of law in literature, law as literature, the application of literary methods to legal texts, the challenges of constructing “characters” appropriate to literary and legal settings, and the revitalization of law through reference to humanistic texts and approaches. Seminar coordinators: Robert Barsky (French and Italian) robert.barsky@vanderbilt.edu and Daniel Gervais (law) daniel.gervais@law.vanderbilt.edu. 

Marx: Foundations and Contemporary Applications: This seminar brings together faculty and graduate students from across campus to explore central Marxist concepts by tracing a path from their inception, through some of the most enduring responses and reworkings, to their most recent applications. Beginning with Karl Marx’s own work, the seminar will examine the way in which Marxist conceptual frameworks have travelled across time and disciplinary boundaries. Readings will include selections from Karl Marx’s Capital, Francis Fukuyama’s The End of History and the Last Man, Jacques Derrida’s Specters of Marx, Fredric Jameson’s An American Utopia, and various texts to be determined by the interests of the group. Meetings are set for Thursdays, September 22, October 6 and 27, November 10, and December 1, all at noon at the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Kira Braham (English) kira.r.braham@vanderbilt.edu and Kylie Korsnack (English) kylie.j.korsnack@vanderbilt.edu. 

Reading Between the Sheets: Sex, Desire and the Erotic:This multi-disciplinary seminar will explore the embodied, lived experiences of sex and sexuality through monthly readings and discussions. Possible topics include, but are not limited to: desire; pleasure; consent; kink/BDSM; the orgasm; the politics of talking about sex with young people and sex education; sex and difference; sex, ability and disability. Meetings are set for Wednesdays, August 31, September 28, October 26, and November 9and 30, all at 11:00 a.m. at the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Elizabeth Lanphier (philosophy) e.lanphier.barone@vanderbilt.edu and Leah Roberts (human and organizational development, Peabody College) leah.m.roberts@vanderbilt.edu. 

Science Studies Seminar: This seminar brings together members of the Vanderbilt community with interests in the humanistic and social studies of science and technology. Activities include sharing work-in-progress, reading recent publications in the field, and hosting invited speakers. Faculty members and graduate students from across the university are welcome. Meetings to be announced soon. Seminar coordinators: Ole Molvig (history) ole.molvig@vanderbilt.edu and Alistair Sponsel (history) alistair.sponsel@vanderbilt.edu.  

2015/2016 Fellows Program. “When the Fringe Dwarfs the Center: Vernacular Islam beyond the Arab World,”co-directed by Tony K. Stewart (religious studies), David Wasserstein (Jewish studies, history), and Samira Sheikh (history) with funding from the John E. Sawyer Seminar Program at the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. Participants in the program are Dianna Bell (religious studies), Daniel A. Birchok (William S. Vaughn Visiting Fellow, anthropology), Julia Phillips Cohen (Jewish studies), Ashish Koul (history), Riyaz Latif (history of art), Richard McGregor (religious studies), William Murrell (history), Moses Ochonu (history), and Anand Taneja (religious studies). 

2015/2016 Warren Center Graduate Student Fellows. Eight graduate students are participating in the Warren Center’s tenth dissertation completion fellowship program.  They are Faith E. Barter (English), Michell Chresfield (history), Jonathan Coley (sociology), Alexander Jacobs (history), Michelle O’Loughlin (modern languages, Queens University, Belfast), Petal Samuel (English), Sandra Skene (philosophy), and Steven Wenz (Spanish and Portuguese). Faith Barter is the American Studies Fellow, Alexander Jacobs is the George J. Graham Jr. Fellow, Steven Wenz is the Joe and Mary Harper Fellow , and Petal Samuel is the Elizabeth E. Fleming Fellow .  

2016/2017 Fellows Program. “Working for Equality and Justice: Theorizing from and with Lived Resistance to Economic Inequality and Injustice,” co-directed byBrooke Ackerly (political science) and Melissa Snarr (divinity). More information about the program will be released later this fall. 

Warren Center 2015/2016 Faculty Fellows Lecture Series.  The current faculty fellows group of the Robert Penn Warren Center presents a lecture series: “When the Fringe Dwarfs the Center: Vernacular Islam Beyond the Arab World.”All talks will be held at 4:10 p.m. followed by a reception. Invited speakers and dates include Juan Cole (history, University of Michigan): "Iran in Syria: Ideology or Pragmatism?" on January 27th in Kissam 216; Naveeda Khan (anthropology, Johns Hopkins University) on February 3rd in Buttrick 123; Moses Ochonu , (history, Vanderbilt University): "Boko Haram and Radical Islamism in the West African Sahel: A Biography"on March 2nd in Kissam 216; Brian Larkin (anthropology and Africana studies, Barnard College) on March 16th , title and location TBA; and Faisal Devji , (history, University of Oxford): “ISIS: Sincerity and Slaughter"on April 13th in Kissam 216. Sponsored by the Andrew W. Mellon John E. Sawyer Seminar and the Robert Penn Warren Center for the Humanities. 

Black Atlantic History Lecture.  Emma Christopher (history, University of Technology, Sydney) will present the Warren Center’s annual Black Atlantic History Lecture on Monday, February 8th at 4:10 p.m. with a screening of her acclaimed film They Are We, the story of a remarkable reunion of a family driven apart by the transatlantic slave trade. The Black Atlantic History Lecture is hosted by the Warren Center’s Circum-Atlantic Studies Group, the Center for Latin American Studies, and the Bishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center in honor of Black History Month. The screening will take place at the Bishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center, followed by a reception. 

Recovering Lost Voices: Robert Penn Warren and the U.S. Civil Rights Movement. On Wednesday, February 10th at 4:00 p.m. in Sarratt Cinema, a panel discussion will take place in honor of Vanderbilt alumnus Robert Penn Warren’s 1965 publication Who Speaks for the Negro? Speakers include two civil rights activists who were interviewed by Warren for the volume, Ruth Turner Perot and Robert Moses, as well as Reverend Kelly Miller Smith, Jr., whose father was interviewed by Warren. A reception will follow. The event is co-sponsored by the Bishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center, the Office of Inclusion Initiatives and Cultural Competence, the Robert Penn Warren Center for the Humanities, and Warren College. 

At the Forefront of Freedom: The Women of Selma. The Robert Penn Warren Center, the Bishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center, and the Ingram Commons will present apanel to discuss the central role women played in the U.S. Civil Rights Movementon Thursday, March 24th at 4:10 p.m. at the Bishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center. Panelists include civil rights activists Jennifer Lawson, Joann Mants, and Judy Richardson, as well as Emily Crosby (history, SUNY-Geneseo) and Hasan Kwame Jeffries (history, Ohio State University). In addition to the panel, there will be a screening of the movie Selma on Wednesday, March 23rd at 7:30 p.m. in Sarratt Cinema. 

Warren Center Graduate Student Fellows Lectures. This spring, each of the Warren Center’s eight graduate student fellows will present a public lecture on his or her research. All lectures take place in the conference room of the Warren Center at 4:10 p.m. and are followed by a reception. The presenters and dates are: Steven Wenz (Spanish and Portuguese),March 21; Michelle O’Loughlin (Modern Languages, Queen’s University Belfast), March 28; Alexander Jacobs (history),April 1; Faith E. Barter (English), April 5; Petal Samuel (English), April 11; Michell Chresfield (history), April 18; Jonathan Coley (sociology), April 26; and Sandra Skene (philosophy), April 28.  

The following is a list of seminars and reading groups for the fall semester. For more detailed information please contact the seminar coordinators or the Warren Center. 

18th-/19th-Century Colloquium: The colloquium brings together faculty, graduate students, and visiting scholars to explore ground-breaking scholarship on the arts, cultures, and histories of the 18th- and 19th-centuries. While loosely focused around British culture, the group also invites scholars from other linguistic and geographic fields to share work and join in the discussion. Guest speakers for the semester include Andrew Miller (English, Johns Hopkins University)on January 22 at1:00 p.m. at the Warren Center, Sandra McPherson (English, Ohio State University) on February 26, and Jim Epstein(history, Vanderbilt) on April 8, both at 2:00 p.m. at the Warren Center.Seminar coordinators: Rachel Teukolsky (English)rachel.teukolsky@vanderbilt.edu and Scott Juengel (English) scott.j.juengel@vanderbilt.edu. 

Brazilian Studies Reading Group: In its third edition, the group will focus on two inter-related topics: Diversity and Development. Monthly meetings consist of discussions among attendees and invited speakers based upon pre-circulated papers that reflect current research related to the topic. Guests come from a variety of disciplines, including—but not limited to—history, anthropology, political science, literature, Latin American studies, international education policy and management, and African diaspora studies. Meetings are set for January 13th with Earl Fitz (Spanish, Vanderbilt) at 3:00 p.m. at the Warren Center, February 19th with Alicia Monroe (African American and Diaspora Studies, Vanderbilt), and March 31st withNara Pavão (political science, Vanderbilt), both at noon at the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Fernanda Bretones (f.bretones@vanderbilt.edu), Laura Sellers (laura.m.sellers@vanderbilt.edu), and Steve Wenz (steven.b.wenz@vanderbilt.edu). 

Circum-Atlantic Studies Seminar: This group reads and treats scholarship that is interdisciplinary in nature, focuses on at least two of the following regions –Africa, Europe, Latin America, the Caribbean, and North America—and treats some aspect of the trans-Atlantic slave trade, colonialism, and/or postcolonialism. Guest speakers include Jason A. Gillmer (law, Gonzaga University) on Thursday, January 21st  at 4:10 p.m. at the Warren Center and Emma Christopher (University of Technology, Sydney) on Monday, February 8th , at 4:10 p.m. at theBishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center. Seminar coordinators: Celso Castilho (history) celso.t.castilho@vanderbilt.edu and Jane Landers (history) jane.landers@vanderbilt.edu. 

The Contemporary in Theory Seminar: Faculty and graduate students from different disciplines and methodological backgrounds will collaborate to foster innovative approaches to the contemporary.  Areas of inquiry include global capitalism, the end of ideology, the development of media and technology, and subsequent questions about the definitions and boundaries of the human.  The seminar will focus on Lydia H. Liu’s The Freudian Robot as well as a number of related works. Meetings are set for Fridays, January 15th , January 29th with guest speaker Lydia Liu (East Asian Languages and Cultures and Comparative Literature, Columbia University), February 26th , and March 18th with guest Seo-Young Chu(English, Queen’s College, CUNY), all at noon at the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Ben Tran (Asian Studies)ben.tran@vanderbilt.edu and Haerin Shin (English) haerin.shin@vanderbilt.edu. 

Derrida’s The Beast and the Sovereign Volumes I & II: This seminar invites scholars from across the university to a reading of Jacques Derrida's final lectures, The Beast and the Sovereign, Vols. I and II.  The seminar will be approaching the concepts of sovereignty and animality through the critical lenses of political theory, law, and posthumanism. The seminar will also invite metadisciplinary reflection as participants attempt to navigate and explore the intersections of philosophy, literary studies, political theory, and the legacies of deconstruction and of Derrida himself. Bi-monthly meetings are scheduled forFridays, January 22nd , February 5th and February 19th , March 18th and March 25th , April 8th and April 21st , all at10:30 a.m. at the Warren Center.  Seminar coordinators: Shelby Johnson (English) shelby.l.johnson@vanderbilt.edu, Paulo Martinez (philosophy) paulo.g.martinez@vanderbilt.edu, and Stephanie Straub (English) s.m.straub@vanderbilt.edu. 

Digital Humanities Discussion Group: The Digital Humanities seminar brings together colleagues from across the university who are interested in issues related to this area of study. The seminar participants will explore theories, practices, and methodologies of DH and explore ways to best support this type of work on our campus. Guest speakers include Alison Jones Nelson (Acquisitions Editor, De Gruyter Publishers) on Tuesday, January 19th at the Center for Second Language Studies, Marion Pratt (Grants Resource Officer, Vanderbilt) on Monday, February 15th at noon at the Warren Center, andFranco Moretti (English, Stanford University) in early April (more details coming soon). Seminar coordinators: Mona Frederick (Warren Center) mona.frederick@vanderbilt.edu, and Todd Hughes (CSLS) todd.hughes@vanderbilt.edu. 

Environmental Humanities: This working group brings together faculty and graduate students in the humanities and creative arts, the social sciences, the natural sciences, engineering, and law to study and forge robust interdisciplinary approaches to ecological issues. Through shared readings and research as well as collaborative projects, the group will explore the conjunctions and conflicts between scientific, social, cultural, creative, philosophical, political, and legal understandings of and engagement with the environment. The seminar seeks to foster new models for how humanistic inquiry can shape ecological questions, both inside and outside of the humanities, as well as participate in public discourse about urgent environmental problems. Meetings are set for Tuesdays, January 12th with guest Ed Rubin (law, Vanderbilt), February 16th with Jason Moore (sociology, Binghamton University), March 15th with Joyce Chaplin (history, Harvard), and April 12th with Amanda Little (English, Vanderbilt), all at 4:10 p.m. at the Warren Center. Seminar Coordinator: Teresa Goddu (English) teresa.a.goddu@vanderbilt.edu. 

Film Theory & Visual Culture Seminar: This seminar aims to foster dialogue among faculty and graduate students across campus working in film, visual culture, art history, literature, and cultural studies interested in theories of the image, philosophies of perception, aesthetic and critical theory, media histories, and the history of vision. The group will meet monthly to discuss readings, share work, and engage the research of invited scholars. Guest speakers include Johannes von Moltke (German, University of Michigan), on January 22nd at noon in Buttrick 123,  J.D. Connor (film and media studies, Yale University) on March 4th at noon at the Warren Center, and Candice Amich (English, Vanderbilt) on April 22nd  at 2:00 p.m. at the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Jennifer Fay (cinema & media arts, English) jennifer.m.fay@vanderbilt.edu, Lutz Koepnick (German, cinema & media arts) lutz.koepnick@vanderbilt.edu, and James McFarland (German, cinema & media arts) james.mcfarland@vanderbilt.edu. 

Gender and Sexualities Seminar: This seminar provides an interdisciplinary forum for the development of critical perspectives on gender and sexuality. The seminar examines how gender and sexuality shape human experience within and across cultures, in different time periods, and as part of social practice.   Participants will choose the format with an aim toward balancing new scholarship by graduate students and established scholars, as well as exploring topics of particular interest to the group. Meetings are set for January 29th and February 26th at 3:00 p.m. in Buttrick 123, March 25th with guest Gilbert Gonzales (health policy, VUMC) and April 15th at 3:00 p.m. at the Warren Center, Seminar coordinator: Katherine Crawford (women’s and gender studies) katherine.b.crawford@vanderbilt.edu. 

Group for Pre-modern Cultural Studies: The purpose of the group is to serve as a forum for those with interests in pre-modern studies, including not only history but language and literature, chiefly, though not exclusively, Greek, Hebrew, and Latin, as well as music, art, and culture. The group meets monthly to discuss ongoing research by a faculty member, recent publications in the field, or the work of a visiting scholar. Guest speakers include Guojun Wang (Asian studies, Vanderbilt) onFriday, March 25th and Jane O. Newman (University of California, Irvine) on Friday, April 15th both at noon at the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Bill Caferro (history) william.p.caferro@vanderbilt.edu, Samira Sheikh (samira.sheikh@vanderbilt.edu), and Jesse Hock (English) jesse.hock@vanderbilt.edu. 

Literature and Law Seminar: This reading group will meet to discuss current approaches, new challenges, and new possibilities that are offered to legal and literary scholars when they use insights from both fields to illuminate their work. The seminar welcomes anyone interested in the many topics now addressed in this field, including the use of obscenity laws to regulate creative work, the representation of law in literature, law as literature, the application of literary methods to legal texts, the challenges of constructing “characters” appropriate to literary and legal settings, and the revitalization of law through reference to humanistic texts and approaches. Meetings are scheduled for Thursdays, February 25th with Dean Lauren Benton (history, Vanderbilt), February 11th with Paul B. Miller (French, Vanderbilt), and April 14th with Georgia Cole(Refugee Studies Center, Oxford University), all at 4:00 p.m. at the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Robert Barsky (French and Italian) robert.barsky@vanderbilt.edu and Daniel Gervais (daniel.gervais@law.vanderbilt.edu). 

Literature, Medicine, and Science Seminar This group will consider how literature mediates narratives of medicine and science. Exploring the intersections of literature, medicine, and science, the seminar will trace the relationships between these intellectual cultures across disciplines. Meeting once a month, the participants will pair non-literary texts with fiction in order to trace dialogues between these traditionally disparate fields, combating the stereotype of a two-culture split between literature and medicine. Topics to be covered include narrative medicine, medicine and visual culture, (bio)ethics, narrative genetics, and speculative fiction and science, among others. Meetings are scheduled for Thursday, January 28th at 2:00 p.m. at the Warren Center, and February 25th , March 24th , and April 21st at noon at the Warren Center. Seminar participants will be encouraged to incorporate their own work into the discussion. Co-coordinators: Lauren Mitchell (English) lauren.mitchell@vanderbilt.edu and Wietske Smeele (English) wietske.m.smeele@vanderbilt.edu. 

Material Cultures Seminar This seminar focuses on the dynamics between objects and people.  Because the study of objects is relevant to every discipline and area of study, every medium and historical period—including conceptions of the future—this seminar will appeal to faculty and graduate students across the College of Arts and Science and the university more widely.  Participants will read and discuss key theoretical texts and case studies and share their own research. Monthly meetings are scheduled for Thursdays, January 21st, February 18th, March 17th, and April 14th at noon at the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Mireille Lee (history of art and classical studies) mireille.lee@vanderbilt.edu and Richard McGregor (religion) richard.j.mcgregor@vanderbilt.edu. 

Mexican Studies Seminar: The goal of this group is to raise the profile of research related to Mexico on the Vanderbilt campus and support members’ individual scholarly endeavors regarding this important nation bordering the United States. The group brings together faculty and graduate students from history, political science, literature, sociology, art, anthropology, music, and Latin American studies. At monthly meetings the group will discuss works-in-progress authored by members and invited scholars from beyond Vanderbilt. Guest speakers include Eric Van Young (history, University of California, San Diego) on Tuesday, January 19th at noon and public lecture at 4:10 p.m. at the Warren Center and Isaac Campos (history, University of Cincinnati) on Tuesday, March 22nd at 4:10 p.m. in Buttrick 123. Seminar coordinator: Edward Wright-Rios (history) edward.wright-rios@vanderbilt.edu. 

Music and Justice Seminar: This seminar examines the intersection of music and justice from both a historical and modern lens. Some key themes of the seminar are music as a source of inspiration and strength for social movements, music as a window into the lives of individuals and groups engaged in political or social struggle, and the production and performance of music as itself a site of labor struggle and contestation. The seminar readings and films will take the participants from the cotton fields of the antebellum South and the docks worked by longshoremen in the Pacific Northwest to Belfast’s punk scene and South Africa’s pirated Americana folk recordings. Meetings are scheduled for Thursdays January 14th , February 11thwith guest Charles Hughes (history, Rhodes College), March 3rd , and Tuesday, April 5th , all at 11:30 a.m. at the Warren Center. Co-coordinators: Rachel Skaggs (sociology) rachel.skaggs@vanderbilt.edu and Anthony C. Siracusa (history) anthony.c.siracusa.iii@vanderbilt.edu. 

Science Studies Seminar: This seminar brings together members of the Vanderbilt community with interests in the humanistic and social studies of science and technology. Activities include sharing work-in-progress, reading recent publications in the field, and hosting invited speakers. Faculty members and graduate students from across the university are welcome. Meetings to be announced soon. Guest speakers include Thomas Andrews (history, University of Colorado, Boulder) on Tuesday, March 1st at noon at the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Ole Molvig (history) ole.molvig@vanderbilt.edu, and Alistair Sponsel (history) alistair.sponsel@vanderbilt.edu.  

2015/2016 Fellows Program. “When the Fringe Dwarfs the Center: Vernacular Islam beyond the Arab World,”co-directed by Tony K. Stewart (religious studies), David Wasserstein (Jewish studies, history), and Samira Sheikh (history) with funding from the John E. Sawyer Seminar Program at the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. Participants in the program are Dianna Bell (religious studies), Daniel A. Birchok (William S. Vaughn Visiting Fellow, anthropology), Julia Phillips Cohen (Jewish studies), Ashish Koul (history), Riyaz Latif (history of art), Richard McGregor (religious studies), William Murrell (history), Moses Ochonu (history), and Anand Taneja (religious studies). 

2015/2016 Warren Center Graduate Student Fellows. Eight graduate students are participating in the Warren Center’s tenth dissertation completion fellowship program.  They are Faith E. Barter (English), Michell Chresfield (history), Jonathan Coley (sociology), Alexander Jacobs (history), Michelle O’Loughlin (modern languages, Queens University, Belfast), Petal Samuel (English), Sandra Skene (philosophy), and Steven Wenz (Spanish and Portuguese). Faith Barter is the American Studies Fellow, Alexander Jacobs is the George J. Graham Jr. Fellow, Steven Wenz is the Joe and Mary Harper Fellow , and Petal Samuel is the Elizabeth E. Fleming Fellow .  

2016/2017 Fellows Program. “Working for Equality and Justice: Theorizing from and with Lived Resistance to Economic Inequality and Injustice,” co-directed byBrooke Ackerly (political science) and Melissa Snarr (divinity). More information about the program will be released later this fall. 

Public Scholarship at Vanderbilt with presenters: Marshall Eakin (history), Joel Harrington (history), Ifeoma Nwankwo (English), Daniel Sharfstein (law), Paul Stob (communication studies), and Holly Tucker (French & Italian, Biomedical Ethics & Society). Faculty, staff, and students are invited to the first of several conversations about public scholarship at Vanderbilt University.  This initial conversation will feature brief presentations by participants in the 2014-2015 fellows program at the Robert Penn Warren Center for the Humanities, which considered issues related to “Public Scholarship in the Humanities.”  This year, participants invite the broader Vanderbilt community to explore such questions as how scholars can make their work more accessible to a general audience; how research, teaching, and civic engagement can fruitfully intersect; how the digital humanities and other forms of new media influence academic work; and how academic institutions, organizations in the private and public sectors, and individuals in the larger community can produce meaningful shared discourse.  After brief presentations from Warren Center Fellows, the meeting will turn to a broad discussion of the possibilities and challenges of pursuing public scholarship at a modern research university. September 15  at 4:10 p.m. in Sarratt Student Center 216/220. Immediately following the discussion a reception with light refreshments will be held at the Robert Penn Warren Center. 

Nashville premiere of She's Beautiful When She's Angry , a documentary about the women's liberation movement from the 1960s. A discussion with the director, Mary Dore, will take place following the film. Monday, October 19 at 4:00 p.m. in Buttrick 103.  

Publishing Scholarly Books for a General Audience with panelists Joel Harrington (history, and author of The Faithful Executioner: Life and Death, Honor and Shame in the Turbulent Sixteenth Century), Wendy Strothman (literary agent, The Strothman Agency, New York), and Virginia Smith Younce (senior editor, Penguin Press). Moderated by Daniel Sharfstein (law and history and author of The Invisible Line: A Secret History of Race in America.) Tuesday, October 20 at 12:10 p.m.in Kissam Center 210. Lunch provided. This is part of the Public Scholarship series.  

Harry C. Howard Jr. Lecture. William Adams , Chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities, will discuss " The Common Good and NEH at 50 " on  Tuesday ,  October 27  at  4:10 p.m.  in the Central Library Community Room, Jean & Alexander Heard Library. A reception will follow the event.  

“Understanding Islam.” As part of its continuing partnership with Humanities Tennessee, the Robert Penn Warren Center for the Humanities is co-sponsoring a series of speakers related to this theme at the 2015 Southern Festival of Books onOctober 9-11 in downtown Nashville. The topic coincides with our 2015-2016 Faculty Fellows topic “Vernacular Islam beyond the Arab World.” More information about speakers will be forthcoming. 

The Humanities and Technology Camp (THATCamp). THATCamp 2015 will be held November 6-7 at the Curb Center for Art, Enterprise & Public Policy. THATCamp is an international program designed to promote interest in and to develop skills related to digital humanities. Examples of sessions might include: TEI (Text Encoding Initiative), digital archiving, video games, 3D modeling, Twitter, tools for beginners, securing funding for digital humanities projects, Omeka, and Neatline. THATCamp is hosted by the Warren Center, the Center for Second Language Studies, the Vanderbilt Institute for Digital Learning, the Curb Center for Art, Enterprise & Public Policy, and the Jean & Alexander Heard Library. Video game developerElonka Dunin will be a participant in the program.  

The following is a list of seminars and reading groups for the fall semester. For more detailed information please contact the seminar coordinators or the Warren Center. 

18th-/19th-Century Colloquium: The colloquium brings together faculty, graduate students, and visiting scholars to explore ground-breaking scholarship on the arts, cultures, and histories of the 18th- and 19th-centuries. While loosely focused around British culture, the group also invites scholars from other linguistic and geographic fields to share work and join in the discussion. Guest speakers for the semester include Carolyn Williams (Rutgers)on September 25, Anahid Nersessian(UCLA)on November 13, and Andrew Miller (Johns Hopkins University) on January 22, all at 2:00 p.m. at the Warren Center.Seminar coordinators: Rachel Teukolsky (English) rachel.teukolsky@vanderbilt.edu and Scott Juengel (English)scott.j.juengel@vanderbilt.edu. 

Brazilian Studies Reading Group: In its third edition, the group will focus on two inter-related topics: Diversity and Development. Monthly meetings consist of discussions among attendees and invited speakers based upon pre-circulated papers that reflect current research related to the topic. Guests come from a variety of disciplines, including—but not limited to—history, anthropology, political science, literature, Latin American studies, international education policy and management, and African diaspora studies. To be on the mailing list and receive papers, contact one of the co-coordinators: Fernanda Bretones (f.bretones@vanderbilt.edu), Laura Sellers (laura.m.sellers@vanderbilt.edu), or Steve Wenz (steven.b.wenz@vanderbilt.edu). 

Circum-Atlantic Studies Seminar: This group reads and treats scholarship that is interdisciplinary in nature, focuses on at least two of the following regions –Africa, Europe, Latin America, the Caribbean, and North America—and treats some aspect of the trans-Atlantic slave trade, colonialism, and/or postcolonialism. Guest speakers for the fall include Selena Sanderfer(history, Western Kentucky University)on Tuesday, September 22 at 4:10 p.m. in Buttrick 123, and Kristin Mann (history, Emory University) on October 15 at noon at the Warren Center.Seminar coordinators: Celso Castilho (history) celso.t.castilho@vanderbilt.edu and Jane Landers (history) jane.landers@vanderbilt.edu. 

The Contemporary in Theory Seminar: Faculty and graduate students from different disciplines and methodological backgrounds will collaborate to foster innovative approaches to the contemporary.  Areas of inquiry include global capitalism, the end of ideology, the development of media and technology, and subsequent questions about the definitions and boundaries of the human.  The seminar will focus on Lydia H. Liu’s The Freudian Robot as well as a number of related works.  Participants will discuss related readings and in the spring the focus will turn to the work of invited speakers and Vanderbilt participants. Meetings will take place Fridays, September 11, October 9, and October 30, all at 11:00 a.m. at the Warren Center.  Seminar coordinators: Ben Tran (Asian Studies) ben.tran@vanderbilt.edu and Haerin Shin (English)haerin.shin@vanderbilt.edu. 

Derrida’s The Beast and the Sovereign Volumes I & II: This seminar invites scholars from across the university to a reading of Jacques Derrida's final lectures, The Beast and the Sovereign, Vols. I and II.  The seminar will be approaching the concepts of sovereignty and animality through the critical lenses of political theory, law, and posthumanism. The seminar will also invite metadisciplinary reflection as participants attempt to navigate and explore the intersections of philosophy, literary studies, political theory, and the legacies of deconstruction and of Derrida himself. Registered participants will receive a copy of each volume and will be invited to contribute to the seminar by leading a discussion session. An organizational meeting is scheduled for Friday, September 4 at 11:00 a.m. at the Warren Center. Subsequent bi-monthly meetings are scheduled forFridays, September 18, October 2, October 23, November 13, and November 20. Co-coordinators: Shelby Johnson (English) shelby.l.johnson@vanderbilt.edu, Paulo Martinez (philosophy) paulo.g.martinez@vanderbilt.edu, and Stephanie Straub (English) s.m.straub@vanderbilt.edu. 

Digital Humanities Discussion Group: The Digital Humanities seminar brings together colleagues from across the university who are interested in issues related to this area of study. The seminar participants will explore theories, practices, and methodologies of DH and explore ways to best support this type of work on our campus. Events this semester include a presentation on Monday, October 5 at noon by Brian Croxall (Digital Humanities Librarian, Center for Digital Scholarship, Brown University Library), Open Access Week, October 19-25 at the Jean and Alexander Heard Library, THATCamp Vanderbilt, November 6-7 at the Curb Center for Art, Enterprise, and Public Policy, and a talk on December 8 on GIS byGabriela Oré Menéndez (anthropology) at noon at the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: (Lynn Ramey (French) on leave, Mona Frederick (Warren Center) mona.frederick@vanderbilt.edu, and Todd Hughes (CSLS) todd.hughes@vanderbilt.edu, 

Environmental Humanities: This working group brings together faculty and graduate students in the humanities and creative arts, the social sciences, the natural sciences, engineering, and law to study and forge robust interdisciplinary approaches to ecological issues. Through shared readings and research as well as collaborative projects, the group will explore the conjunctions and conflicts between scientific, social, cultural, creative, philosophical, political, and legal understandings of and engagement with the environment. The seminar seeks to foster new models for how humanistic inquiry can shape ecological questions, both inside and outside of the humanities, as well as participate in public discourse about urgent environmental problems. Meetings this semester are scheduled for Tuesdays, September 8, October 6 with guest speaker Nathaniel Rich (novelist speaking on climate fiction), November 3, and December 1 at 4:00 p.m. at the Warren Center. Seminar Coordinators: Catherine Molineux (history) catherine.a.molineux @vanderbilt.edu and Teresa Goddu (English) teresa.a.goddu@vanderbilt.edu. 

Film Theory & Visual Culture Seminar: This seminar aims to foster dialogue among faculty and graduate students across campus working in film, visual culture, art history, literature, and cultural studies interested in theories of the image, philosophies of perception, aesthetic and critical theory, media histories, and the history of vision. The group will meet monthly to discuss readings, share work, and engage the research of invited scholars. Guest speakers include Akira Lippit (School of Cinematic Arts, University of Southern California) on Friday, October 2, Karla Oeler (Film and Media Studies, Emory University) on November 6, and Nick Sousanis (University of Calgary) on Friday, December 4. All events are at noon at the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Jennifer Fay (cinema & media arts, English) jennifer.m.fay@vanderbilt.edu, Lutz Koepnick (German, cinema & media arts) lutz.koepnick@vanderbilt.edu, and James McFarland (German, cinema & media arts) james.mcfarland@vanderbilt.edu. 

Gender and Sexualities Seminar: This seminar provides an interdisciplinary forum for the development of critical perspectives on gender and sexuality. The seminar examines how gender and sexuality shape human experience within and across cultures, in different time periods, and as part of social practice.   Participants will choose the format with an aim toward balancing new scholarship by graduate students and established scholars, as well as exploring topics of particular interest to the group. The first organizational meeting is scheduled for Thursday, September 17 at noon at the Warren Center. Seminar coordinator: Katherine Crawford (women’s and gender studies) katherine.b.crawford@vanderbilt.edu. 

Group for Pre-modern Cultural Studies: The purpose of the group is to serve as a forum for those with interests in pre-modern studies, including not only history but language and literature, chiefly, though not exclusively, Greek, Hebrew, and Latin, as well as music, art, and culture. The group meets monthly to discuss ongoing research by a faculty member, recent publications in the field, or the work of a visiting scholar. The first meeting of the semester will be on Thursday, September 10 with guest speaker Francesca Trivellato (history, Yale University)at 4:10 p.m. in Buttrick 123. On Tuesday, September 29, Ellen MacKay (English, Indiana University) will give a talk at noon at the Warren Center. Meetings are scheduled forTuesday, October 13 and Tuesday, November 10 with guest speaker Richard A. Strier (English, University of Chicago) atnoon at the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Bill Caferro (history) william.p.caferro@vanderbilt.edu, Samira Sheihk (samira.sheikh@vanderbilt.edu), Leah Marcus (English) l.marcus@vanderbilt.edu, and Deann Armstrong (English)deann.v.armstrong@vanderbilt.edu. 

Imagining America: Artists and Scholars in Public Life: This group provides opportunities for exchange among faculty members and graduate students who are interested in or who are currently involved in projects that engage public scholarship. Vanderbilt is a member of the national organization, “Imagining America,” a consortium of colleges and universities committed to public scholarship in the arts, humanities, and design. Seminar coordinator: Mona Frederick (Warren Center) mona.frederick@vanderbilt.edu and Joe Bandy (Center for Teaching, sociology) joe.bandy@vanderbilt.edu. 

Literature and Law Seminar: This reading group will meet to discuss current approaches, new challenges, and new possibilities that are offered to legal and literary scholars when they use insights from both fields to illuminate their work. The seminar welcomes anyone interested in the many topics now addressed in this field, including the use of obscenity laws to regulate creative work, the representation of law in literature, law as literature, the application of literary methods to legal texts, the challenges of constructing “characters” appropriate to literary and legal settings, and the revitalization of law through reference to humanistic texts and approaches. Seminar coordinators: Robert Barsky (French and Italian)robert.barsky@vanderbilt.edu and Daniel Gervais (daniel.gervais@law.vanderbilt.edu). 

Literature, Medicine, and Science Seminar This group will consider how literature mediates narratives of medicine and science. Exploring the intersections of literature, medicine, and science, the seminar will trace the relationships between these intellectual cultures across disciplines. Meeting once a month, the participants will pair non-literary texts with fiction in order to trace dialogues between these traditionally disparate fields, combating the stereotype of a two-culture split between literature and medicine. Topics to be covered include narrative medicine, medicine and visual culture, (bio)ethics, narrative genetics, and speculative fiction and science, among others. An organizational meeting is scheduled for Thursday, September 10 at 10:00 a.m. Seminar participants will be encouraged to incorporate their own work into the discussion. Co-coordinators: Lauren Mitchell (English) lauren.mitchell@vanderbilt.edu and Wietske Smeele (English)wietske.m.smeele@vanderbilt.edu. 

Material Cultures Seminar This seminar focuses on the dynamics between objects and people.  Because the study of objects is relevant to every discipline and area of study, every medium and historical period –including conceptions of the future –this seminar will appeal to faculty and graduate students across the College of Arts and Science and the university more widely.  Participants will read and discuss key theoretical texts and case studies and share their own research. Monthly meetings are scheduled for Thursdays , September 10 , October 1 , November 12 , and December 10 , all at noon at the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Mireille Lee (history of art and classical studies) mireille.lee@vanderbilt.edu and Richard McGregor (religion) richard.j.mcgregor@vanderbilt.edu . 

Mexican Studies Seminar: The goal of this group is to raise the profile of research related to Mexico on the Vanderbilt campus and support members’ individual scholarly endeavors regarding this important nation bordering the United States. The group brings together faculty and graduate students from history, political science, literature, sociology, art, anthropology, music, and Latin American studies. At monthly meetings the group will discuss works-in-progress authored by members and invited scholars from beyond Vanderbilt. A meeting is scheduled for Thursday, November 5 with guest speaker Eric Van Young (history, University of California, San Diego) at noon at the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Helena Simonett (Latin American studies) helena.simonett@vanderbilt.edu and Edward Wright-Rios (history) edward.wright-rios@vanderbilt.edu. 

Music and Justice Seminar: This seminar examines the intersection of music and justice from both a historical and modern lens. Some key themes of the seminar are music as a source of inspiration and strength for social movements, music as a window into the lives of individuals and groups engaged in political or social struggle, and the production and performance of music as itself a site of labor struggle and contestation. The seminar readings and films will take the participants from the cotton fields of the antebellum South and the docks worked by longshoremen in the Pacific Northwest to Belfast’s punk scene and South Africa’s pirated Americana folk recordings. The group will listen to recordings made in churches and activist spaces across the United States, as well as listen to live music together in Nashville. The seminar will also feature a running playlist created by seminar conveners and will conclude with a collaborative playlist built by seminar participants. An organizational meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, September 8 at 1:00 p.m. at the Warren Center.  Co-coordinators: Rachel Skaggs (sociology) rachel.skaggs@vanderbilt.edu and Anthony C. Siracusa (history)anthony.c.siracusa.iii@vanderbilt.edu. 

Science Studies Seminar: This seminar brings together members of the Vanderbilt community with interests in the humanistic and social studies of science and technology. Activities include sharing work-in-progress, reading recent publications in the field, and hosting invited speakers. Faculty members and graduate students from across the university are welcome. Meetings this semester are scheduled for Thursday, September 24, at noon at the Warren Center, Wednesdays, October 21 and November 11 at noon in Buttrick 123, and Thursday, December 3 at noon at the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Ole Molvig (history) ole.molvig@vanderbilt.edu, and Alistair Sponsel (history)alistair.sponsel@vanderbilt.edu.  

 

2014/2015 Fellows Program. “Public Scholarship in the Humanities,” co-directed by Joel Harrington (history) and Holly Tucker (French & Italian, Biomedical Ethics & Society). Participants in the program are Marshall Eakin (history), Aimi Hamraie (medicine, health, and society), Ifeoma Nwankwo (English), Lynn Ramey (French), Daniel Sharfstein (law), and Paul Stob (communication studies). The 2014-2015 William S. Vaughn Visiting Fellow is Lara Stein Pardo (anthropology). 

2014/2015 Warren Center Graduate Student Fellows. Eight graduate students are participating in the Warren Center’s ninth dissertation completion fellowship program.  They are Jessica Burch (history), Adam Burgos (philosophy), Kathleen DeGuzman (English), Daniel McAuley (French, Queen’s University Belfast), Luis Menéndez-Antuña (religion), Carly Rush (sociology), Amy Tan (history), and Brendan Weaver (anthropology). Jessica Burch is the American Studies Fellow, Adam Burgos is the George J. Graham Jr. Fellow, and Kathleen DeGuzman is the Elizabeth E. Fleming Fellow. 

2015/2016 Fellows Program Sawyer Seminar. “When the Fringe Dwarfs the Center: Vernacular Islam beyond the Arab World,”co-directed by Samira Sheikh (history), Tony Stewart (religious studies), and David Wasserstein (Jewish studies, history). 

Black Atlantic History Lecture 

Randy Sparks (Professor of History, Tulane University) will present the Warren Center’s annual Black Atlantic History Lecture on Thursday, February 19 at 4:10 p.m. Professor Sparks will speak on his new book, Where the Negroes Are Masters: An African Port in the Era of the Slave Trade. The Black Atlantic History Lecture is hosted by the Warren Center’s Circum-Atlantic Studies Group and the Bishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center in honor of Black History Month. The talk will take place in theBishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center, followed by a reception. 

Grant and Fellowship Opportunities 

The Program in Career Development and the Robert Penn Warren Center for the Humanities will present a program on Thursday, April 9, 2015 at noon (location to be announced), featuring Marika Dunn, deputy director of the Dissertation Proposal Development Fellowship Program, Social Science Research Council (SSRC) and  Elizabeth Mansfield, vice president for scholarly programs, National Humanities Center. More information about this program will be distributed later in the semester. 

Todd Presner 

The Max Kade Center for European and German Studies is hosting a visit by Todd Presner (Chair of the Digital Humanities Program, Professor of German, and Director of the Center for Jewish Studies at UCLA) with co-sponsorship by the Warren Center’s Digital Humanities seminar, the Comparative Media Arts Project (cmap), Jewish Studies, and the Curb Center for Art, Enterprise, and Public Policy. There will be two public lectures: “From Berlin to LA and Beyond: Thick Mapping and the Digital Humanities,” an introductory level talk about the HyperCities project on Thursday, February 5 at 6:00 p.m. in 306 Buttrick, and “The Ethics of the Algorithm: Close and Distant Listening to the Shoah Foundation Visual History Archive” on Friday, February 6 at 11:10 a.m. in 123 Buttrick. 

Warren Center Graduate Student Fellows Lectures 

This spring, each of the Warren Center’s eight graduate students will present a public lecture on his or her research. All lectures take place in the conference room of the Warren Center at 4:10 p.m. and are followed by a reception. The presenters and dates are: Jessica Burch (history), March 23; Daniel McAuley (French, Queen’s University Belfast), March 31; Amy Tan (history), April 2; Brendan Weaver (anthropology), April 7; Adam Burgos (philosophy), April 10; Luis Menéndez-Antuña (religion), April 14; Carly Rush (sociology), April 21; and Kathleen DeGuzman (English), April 29. 

The following is a list of seminars and reading groups for the spring semester. For more detailed information please contact the seminar coordinators or the Warren Center. 

18th-/19th-Century Colloquium: The colloquium brings together faculty, graduate students, and visiting scholars to explore ground-breaking scholarship on the arts, cultures, and histories of the 18th- and 19th-centuries. While loosely focused around British culture, the group also invites scholars from other linguistic and geographic fields to share work and join in the discussion. Upcoming speakers include Forest Pyle, (English, University of Oregon), on January 23, Rachel Teukolsky (English, Vanderbilt) on February 20, Scott J. Juengel (English, Vanderbilt) on March 13, and Judith Stoddart (English, Michigan State University) on April 3. All talks will take place at 2:00 p.m. at the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Rachel Teukolsky (English) rachel.teukolsky@vanderbilt.edu, Scott Juengel (English) scott.j.juengel@vanderbilt.edu, and Humberto Garcia (English) humberto.garcia@vanderbilt.edu. 

Brazilian Studies Reading Group: This seminar provides a forum for topics related to contemporary Brazil. Discussion will center on the broad theme of "Citizenship and the Nation." The group will facilitate interdisciplinary dialogues based on pre-circulated readings, consider works-in-progress by graduate students and faculty, and invite recognized scholars to present new work. Topics will include traditional power structures and the political system, social movements, income inequity and "social apartheid," race, and access to education and healthcare. Upcoming guest speakers include Mira Kohl (Latin American Studies, Tulane University) on January 16, Melissa Teixeira (history, Princeton University) on February 19, Jay Sosa (anthropology, University of Chicago) on January 29, Marcio Bahia (Spanish and Portuguese, Vanderbilt) on February 25, Christopher Dunn (Spanish and Portuguese, Tulane University) on March 19 at 4 p.m. in Buttrick 102 and March 20 at 12 p.m. in Buttrick 123, Manuela Areias, (history, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro) on April 2, and Daniel O’Maley on April 9. All talks take place at 12 p.m. at the Warren Center unless otherwise noted. Seminar coordinators: Fernanda Bretones Lane (history) f.bretones@vanderbilt.edu, Daniel O’Maley (anthropology) dan.omaley@vanderbilt.edu, and Laura Sellers (political science) laura.m.sellers@vanderbilt.edu. 

Circum-Atlantic Studies Seminar: This group reads and treats scholarship that is interdisciplinary in nature, focuses on at least two of the following regions—Africa, Europe, Latin America, the Caribbean, and North America—and treats some aspect of the trans-Atlantic slave trade, colonialism, and/or postcolonialism. Upcoming speakers include James Sanders (history, Utah State University) on January 22 at 3:10 p.m. in Sarratt 189, Randy Sparks (history, Tulane University) on February 19 at 4:10 p.m. at the Black Cultural Center, and Molly Warsh (history, University of Pittsburg) on April 1 (time and location, TBA). Seminar coordinators: Celso Castilho (history) celso.t.castilho@vanderbilt.edu and Jane Landers (history) jane.landers@vanderbilt.edu. 

Digital Humanities Discussion Group: The Digital Humanities seminar brings together colleagues from across the university who are interested in issues related to this area of study.  The seminar participants will explore theories, practices, and methodologies of DH and explore ways to best support this type of work on our campus. Monthly meetings at 12 p.m. at the Warren center are scheduled for January 14, February 18, March 12, and April 8, as well as a breakfast meeting with guest Todd Presner on February 6 at 9 a.m. at the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Lynn Ramey (French) lynn.ramey@vanderbilt.edu and Mona Frederick (Warren Center) mona.frederick@vanderbilt.edu. 

Early Modern Enlightenment: This seminar will examine the period of intellectual history designated as the Enlightenment. The multidisciplinary seminar isolates three categories for investigation: law, violence, and epistemology. These areas of inquiry demonstrate that the so-called Enlightenment was sufficiently multifarious to provide legitimate grounds for isolating rival, competing, and incompatible Enlightenments. Meetings will place visiting scholars with Vanderbilt faculty and graduate students, and they will center on the question of how the Enlightenment has been subjected to repeated celebration, vilification, and contestation in academic circles. Meetings this semester are scheduled for Mondays, January 26, February 16, March 23, and Wednesday, April 15 at 11:10 a.m. at the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: León Guerrero (Spanish and Portuguese) leon.guerrero.ayala@Vanderbilt.Edu, Drew Martin (religion) drew.martin@vanderbilt.edu, and Chance Woods (English) chance.b.woods@vanderbilt.edu. 

Film Theory & Visual Culture Seminar: This seminar aims to foster dialogue among faculty and graduate students across campus working in film, visual culture, art history, literature, and cultural studies interested in theories of the image, philosophies of perception, aesthetic and critical theory, media histories, and the history of vision. The group will meet monthly to discuss readings, share work, and engage the research of invited scholars. Upcoming speakers include: Inga Pollmann (German, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill), on January 16 at 12 p.m. in Sarratt 189; Jim McFarland (cinema and media arts, Vanderbilt), on February 13 at 12 p.m. in Buttrick 123; Tom Schatz (film, University of Texas, Austin), on March 13 at 12 p.m. in Buttrick 123; and Michael Moon (women’s, gender, and sexuality studies, Emory University) on April 10 at 12 p.m. in Sarratt 189. Seminar coordinators: Jennifer Fay (cinema and media arts, English) jennifer.m.fay@vanderbilt.edu, Lutz Koepnick (German, cinema and media arts) lutz.koepnick@vanderbilt.edu, and James McFarland (German, cinema and media arts) james.mcfarland@vanderbilt.edu. 

Gender and Sexualities Seminar: This seminar provides an interdisciplinary forum for the development of critical perspectives on gender and sexuality. The seminar examines how gender and sexuality shape human experience within and across cultures, in different time periods, and as part of social practice.   Participants will choose the format with an aim toward balancing new scholarship by graduate students and established scholars, as well as exploring topics of particular interest to the group. Upcoming speakers include Gayle Sulik (independent scholar), author of Pink Ribbon Blues: How Breast Cancer Culture Undermines Women’s Health on March 19 at 4:10 pm Wilson Hall 126. Seminar coordinator: Laura Carpenter (sociology and women’s and gender studies) laura.carpenter@vanderbilt.edu. 

Group for Pre-modern Cultural Studies:  The purpose of the group is to serve as a forum for those with interests in pre-modern studies, including not only history but language and literature, chiefly, though not exclusively, Greek, Hebrew, and Latin, as well as music, art, and culture. The group meets monthly to discuss ongoing research by a faculty member, recent publications in the field, or the work of a visiting scholar. Upcoming speakers include Samira Sheikh (history, Vanderbilt), on January 20 at 12 p.m. at the Warren Center, Ellen McKay (English, Indiana University) on February 17 at 12 p.m. at the Warren Center and Deann Armstrong in April (date and location TBA). Seminar coordinators: Leah Marcus (English) l.marcus@vanderbilt.edu, Deann Armstrong (English) deann.v.armstrong@vanderbilt.edu, Bill Caferro (history) william.p.caferro@vanderbilt.edu, and Samira Sheikh (history) samira.sheikh@vanderbilt.edu. 

Imagining America: Artists and Scholars in Public Life: The Warren Center and the American Studies Program are co-sponsoring this group to provide opportunities for exchange among faculty members and graduate students who are interested in or who are currently involved in projects that engage public scholarship. Vanderbilt is a member of the national organization, “Imagining America,” a consortium of colleges and universities committed to public scholarship in the arts, humanities, and design. Seminar coordinator: Mona Frederick (Warren Center) mona.frederick@vanderbilt.edu.  

Literature and Law Seminar: This reading group will meet to discuss current approaches, new challenges, and new possibilities that are offered to legal and literary scholars when they use insights from both fields to illuminate their work. The seminar welcomes anyone interested in the many topics now addressed in this field, including the use of obscenity laws to regulate creative work, the representation of law in literature, law as literature, the application of literary methods to legal texts, the challenges of constructing “characters” appropriate to literary and legal settings, and the revitalization of law through reference to humanistic texts and approaches. Seminar coordinator: Robert Barsky (French and Italian) robert.barsky@vanderbilt.edu. 

Mexican Studies Seminar. The goal of this group is to raise the profile of research related to Mexico on the Vanderbilt campus and support members’ individual scholarly endeavors regarding this important nation bordering the United States. The group brings together faculty and graduate students from history, political science, literature, sociology, art, anthropology, music, and Latin American studies. At monthly meetings the group will discuss work-in-progress authored by members and invited scholars from beyond Vanderbilt. On Friday, March 13, a program entitled “Mexico on the Verge” will be held from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. in Buttrick 162. Speakers include Alex Aviña (history, Florida State University), Tanalís Padilla (history, Dartmouth), and Jaime Pensado (history, University of Notre Dame). In addition, César Burgos Dávila (ethnic studies, University of California, Berkeley) will give a public lecture on April 9 at 4 p.m. in Buttrick 123. Seminar coordinators: Helena Simonett (Latin American Studies) helena.simonett@vanderbilt.edu and Edward Wright-Rios (history) edward.wright-rios@vanderbilt.edu. Co-sponsored by the Center for Latin American Studies. 

A People's History of Nashville: This seminar invites those engaged in current social movements to gather and learn the history of the working and dispossessed classes of the city, and to reflect on how recovering the memory of past social struggle might inform future strategies. The seminar will host monthly meetings and visits to neighborhoods and landmarks, seeking respectful collaborations with scholars and organizations across the city pursuing similar projects. Upcoming events include a viewing of the film Selma on January 17 at 4:40 p.m. at the Green Hills cinema, and a talk on urban renewal in the Edgehill neighborhood of Nashville on January 24 (time and location TBA). Seminar coordinators: Tristan Call (anthropology) tristan.p.call@vanderbilt.edu and Austin Sauerbrei (community development and action) austin.b.sauerbrei@vanderbilt.edu. 

Race, Gender and Kinship: Spaces of Global Capitalism: This group hopes to address the shortcomings of economic formulas that ignore the psychic predispositions and pressures of global capitalism. Members will read Justice, Nature, and the Geography of Difference by David Harvey, which focuses on the dynamics of urbanization, the division of labor, and their effects on the environment. Later in the semester, the group will use Harvey’s analytical model to discuss the case study of Rana Dasgupta’s Capital: A Portrait of Twenty-First Century Delhi. With the bleak projected future of decreasing natural resources and increasing populations concentrated within dense urban spaces, Dasgupta’s work offers a crucial counter-narrative illustrating the catastrophic effects of globalization and capitalism on Delhi’s economic evolution. The first organizational meeting will take place on January 15 at 11 a.m. at the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Kirsten Mendoza (English) kirsten.n.mendoza@vanderbilt.edu, Emily Burchfield (environmental engineering, management and policy) emily.k.burchfield@vanderbilt.edu, and Gideon Park (religion) gideon.park@vanderbilt.edu. 

Religion and Culture in Late Antiquity. Late Antiquity is a term used by scholars to describe a historical period which includes both the end of classical civilizations and the first centuries of medieval societies in Mediterranean, Africa, Europe and the Near East. The seminar’s geographic definition of “Late Antiquity” will focus primarily on the cultures and societies of the Mediterranean world, but can also be broadly construed. Participation from ancient historians, medievalists, and scholars of Asia or other areas of research that may have overlapping interests is welcomed. The seminar will meet once per month (February 9, March 10, and April 13 at 12 p.m. at the Warren Center) for a discussion of current research by Vanderbilt faculty or Ph.D. students. Upcoming speakers include Adam Levine (Associate Curator of Ancient Art, Toledo Museum of Art) on January 20 at 12:10 p.m. in the Tillett lounge, room 128 at the Divinity School. Seminar coordinators: Mark Ellison (religion) mark.d.ellison@vanderbilt.edu, Robin Jensen (history of art) robin.jensen@vanderbilt.edu, and David Michelson (divinity) david.a.michelson@vanderbilt.edu. 

Science Studies Seminar 

This seminar brings together members of the Vanderbilt community with interests in the humanistic and social studies of science and technology. Activities include sharing work in progress, reading recent publications in the field, and hosting invited speakers. Faculty members and graduate students from across the university are welcome. Lunchtime meetings this semester are scheduled for January 15, February 26, March 26, and April 23 at 12 p.m. at the Warren Center. Contact seminar coordinators: Ole Molvig (Vanderbilt Institute for Digital Learning) ole.molvig@vanderbilt.edu or Alistair Sponsel (history) alistair.sponsel@vanderbilt.edu to be added to the group's email list. 

 

2014/2015 Fellows Program. “Public Scholarship in the Humanities,” co-directed by Joel Harrington (history) and Holly Tucker (French & Italian, Biomedical Ethics & Society). Participants in the program are Marshall Eakin (history), Aimi Hamraie (medicine, health, and society), Ifeoma Nwankwo (English), Lynn Ramey (French), Daniel Sharfstein (law), and Paul Stob (communication studies). The 2014-2015 William S. Vaughn Visiting Fellow is Lara Stein Pardo (anthropology). 

2014/2015 Warren Center Graduate Student Fellows. Eight graduate students are participating in the Warren Center’s ninth dissertation completion fellowship program.  They are Jessica Burch (history), Adam Burgos (philosophy), Kathleen DeGuzman (English), Daniel McAuley (French, Queen’s University Belfast), Luis Menéndez-Antuña (religion), Carly Rush (sociology), Amy Tan (history), and Brendan Weaver (anthropology). Jessica Burch is the American Studies Fellow, Adam Burgos is the George J. Graham Jr. Fellow, and Kathleen DeGuzman is the Elizabeth E. Fleming Fellow. 

2015/2016 Fellows Program Sawyer Seminar. “When the Fringe Dwarfs the Center: Vernacular Islam beyond the Arab World,”co-directed by Samira Sheikh (history), Tony Stewart (religious studies), and David Wasserstein (Jewish studies, history). 

Black Atlantic History Lecture 

Randy Sparks (Professor of History, Tulane University) will present the Warren Center’s annual Black Atlantic History Lecture on Thursday, February 19 at 4:10 p.m. Professor Sparks will speak on his new book, Where the Negroes Are Masters: An African Port in the Era of the Slave Trade. The Black Atlantic History Lecture is hosted by the Warren Center’s Circum-Atlantic Studies Group and the Bishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center in honor of Black History Month. The talk will take place in theBishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center, followed by a reception. 

Grant and Fellowship Opportunities 

The Program in Career Development and the Robert Penn Warren Center for the Humanities will present a program on Thursday, April 9, 2015 at noon (location to be announced), featuring Marika Dunn, deputy director of the Dissertation Proposal Development Fellowship Program, Social Science Research Council (SSRC) and  Elizabeth Mansfield, vice president for scholarly programs, National Humanities Center. More information about this program will be distributed later in the semester. 

Todd Presner 

The Max Kade Center for European and German Studies is hosting a visit by Todd Presner (Chair of the Digital Humanities Program, Professor of German, and Director of the Center for Jewish Studies at UCLA) with co-sponsorship by the Warren Center’s Digital Humanities seminar, the Comparative Media Arts Project (cmap), Jewish Studies, and the Curb Center for Art, Enterprise, and Public Policy. There will be two public lectures: “From Berlin to LA and Beyond: Thick Mapping and the Digital Humanities,” an introductory level talk about the HyperCities project on Thursday, February 5 at 6:00 p.m. in 306 Buttrick, and “The Ethics of the Algorithm: Close and Distant Listening to the Shoah Foundation Visual History Archive” on Friday, February 6 at 11:10 a.m. in 123 Buttrick. 

Warren Center Graduate Student Fellows Lectures 

This spring, each of the Warren Center’s eight graduate students will present a public lecture on his or her research. All lectures take place in the conference room of the Warren Center at 4:10 p.m. and are followed by a reception. The presenters and dates are: Jessica Burch (history), March 23; Daniel McAuley (French, Queen’s University Belfast), March 31; Amy Tan (history), April 2; Brendan Weaver (anthropology), April 7; Adam Burgos (philosophy), April 10; Luis Menéndez-Antuña (religion), April 14; Carly Rush (sociology), April 21; and Kathleen DeGuzman (English), April 29. 

The following is a list of seminars and reading groups for the spring semester. For more detailed information please contact the seminar coordinators or the Warren Center. 

18th-/19th-Century Colloquium: The colloquium brings together faculty, graduate students, and visiting scholars to explore ground-breaking scholarship on the arts, cultures, and histories of the 18th- and 19th-centuries. While loosely focused around British culture, the group also invites scholars from other linguistic and geographic fields to share work and join in the discussion. Upcoming speakers include Forest Pyle, (English, University of Oregon), on January 23, Rachel Teukolsky (English, Vanderbilt) on February 20, Scott J. Juengel (English, Vanderbilt) on March 13, and Judith Stoddart (English, Michigan State University) on April 3. All talks will take place at 2:00 p.m. at the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Rachel Teukolsky (English) rachel.teukolsky@vanderbilt.edu, Scott Juengel (English) scott.j.juengel@vanderbilt.edu, and Humberto Garcia (English) humberto.garcia@vanderbilt.edu. 

Brazilian Studies Reading Group: This seminar provides a forum for topics related to contemporary Brazil. Discussion will center on the broad theme of "Citizenship and the Nation." The group will facilitate interdisciplinary dialogues based on pre-circulated readings, consider works-in-progress by graduate students and faculty, and invite recognized scholars to present new work. Topics will include traditional power structures and the political system, social movements, income inequity and "social apartheid," race, and access to education and healthcare. Upcoming guest speakers include Mira Kohl (Latin American Studies, Tulane University) on January 16, Melissa Teixeira (history, Princeton University) on February 19, Jay Sosa (anthropology, University of Chicago) on January 29, Marcio Bahia (Spanish and Portuguese, Vanderbilt) on February 25, Christopher Dunn (Spanish and Portuguese, Tulane University) on March 19 at 4 p.m. in Buttrick 102 and March 20 at 12 p.m. in Buttrick 123, Manuela Areias, (history, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro) on April 2, and Daniel O’Maley on April 9. All talks take place at 12 p.m. at the Warren Center unless otherwise noted. Seminar coordinators: Fernanda Bretones Lane (history) f.bretones@vanderbilt.edu, Daniel O’Maley (anthropology) dan.omaley@vanderbilt.edu, and Laura Sellers (political science) laura.m.sellers@vanderbilt.edu. 

Circum-Atlantic Studies Seminar: This group reads and treats scholarship that is interdisciplinary in nature, focuses on at least two of the following regions—Africa, Europe, Latin America, the Caribbean, and North America—and treats some aspect of the trans-Atlantic slave trade, colonialism, and/or postcolonialism. Upcoming speakers include James Sanders (history, Utah State University) on January 22 at 3:10 p.m. in Sarratt 189, Randy Sparks (history, Tulane University) on February 19 at 4:10 p.m. at the Black Cultural Center, and Molly Warsh (history, University of Pittsburg) on April 1 (time and location, TBA). Seminar coordinators: Celso Castilho (history) celso.t.castilho@vanderbilt.edu and Jane Landers (history) jane.landers@vanderbilt.edu. 

Digital Humanities Discussion Group: The Digital Humanities seminar brings together colleagues from across the university who are interested in issues related to this area of study.  The seminar participants will explore theories, practices, and methodologies of DH and explore ways to best support this type of work on our campus. Monthly meetings at 12 p.m. at the Warren center are scheduled for January 14, February 18, March 12, and April 8, as well as a breakfast meeting with guest Todd Presner on February 6 at 9 a.m. at the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Lynn Ramey (French) lynn.ramey@vanderbilt.edu and Mona Frederick (Warren Center) mona.frederick@vanderbilt.edu. 

Early Modern Enlightenment: This seminar will examine the period of intellectual history designated as the Enlightenment. The multidisciplinary seminar isolates three categories for investigation: law, violence, and epistemology. These areas of inquiry demonstrate that the so-called Enlightenment was sufficiently multifarious to provide legitimate grounds for isolating rival, competing, and incompatible Enlightenments. Meetings will place visiting scholars with Vanderbilt faculty and graduate students, and they will center on the question of how the Enlightenment has been subjected to repeated celebration, vilification, and contestation in academic circles. Meetings this semester are scheduled for Mondays, January 26, February 16, March 23, and Wednesday, April 15 at 11:10 a.m. at the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: León Guerrero (Spanish and Portuguese) leon.guerrero.ayala@Vanderbilt.Edu, Drew Martin (religion) drew.martin@vanderbilt.edu, and Chance Woods (English) chance.b.woods@vanderbilt.edu. 

Film Theory & Visual Culture Seminar: This seminar aims to foster dialogue among faculty and graduate students across campus working in film, visual culture, art history, literature, and cultural studies interested in theories of the image, philosophies of perception, aesthetic and critical theory, media histories, and the history of vision. The group will meet monthly to discuss readings, share work, and engage the research of invited scholars. Upcoming speakers include: Inga Pollmann (German, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill), on January 16 at 12 p.m. in Sarratt 189; Jim McFarland (cinema and media arts, Vanderbilt), on February 13 at 12 p.m. in Buttrick 123; Tom Schatz (film, University of Texas, Austin), on March 13 at 12 p.m. in Buttrick 123; and Michael Moon (women’s, gender, and sexuality studies, Emory University) on April 10 at 12 p.m. in Sarratt 189. Seminar coordinators: Jennifer Fay (cinema and media arts, English) jennifer.m.fay@vanderbilt.edu, Lutz Koepnick (German, cinema and media arts) lutz.koepnick@vanderbilt.edu, and James McFarland (German, cinema and media arts) james.mcfarland@vanderbilt.edu. 

Gender and Sexualities Seminar: This seminar provides an interdisciplinary forum for the development of critical perspectives on gender and sexuality. The seminar examines how gender and sexuality shape human experience within and across cultures, in different time periods, and as part of social practice.   Participants will choose the format with an aim toward balancing new scholarship by graduate students and established scholars, as well as exploring topics of particular interest to the group. Upcoming speakers include Gayle Sulik (independent scholar), author of Pink Ribbon Blues: How Breast Cancer Culture Undermines Women’s Health on March 19 at 4:10 pm Wilson Hall 126. Seminar coordinator: Laura Carpenter (sociology and women’s and gender studies) laura.carpenter@vanderbilt.edu. 

Group for Pre-modern Cultural Studies:  The purpose of the group is to serve as a forum for those with interests in pre-modern studies, including not only history but language and literature, chiefly, though not exclusively, Greek, Hebrew, and Latin, as well as music, art, and culture. The group meets monthly to discuss ongoing research by a faculty member, recent publications in the field, or the work of a visiting scholar. Upcoming speakers include Samira Sheikh (history, Vanderbilt), on January 20 at 12 p.m. at the Warren Center, Ellen McKay (English, Indiana University) on February 17 at 12 p.m. at the Warren Center and Deann Armstrong in April (date and location TBA). Seminar coordinators: Leah Marcus (English) l.marcus@vanderbilt.edu, Deann Armstrong (English) deann.v.armstrong@vanderbilt.edu, Bill Caferro (history) william.p.caferro@vanderbilt.edu, and Samira Sheikh (history) samira.sheikh@vanderbilt.edu. 

Imagining America: Artists and Scholars in Public Life: The Warren Center and the American Studies Program are co-sponsoring this group to provide opportunities for exchange among faculty members and graduate students who are interested in or who are currently involved in projects that engage public scholarship. Vanderbilt is a member of the national organization, “Imagining America,” a consortium of colleges and universities committed to public scholarship in the arts, humanities, and design. Seminar coordinator: Mona Frederick (Warren Center) mona.frederick@vanderbilt.edu.  

Literature and Law Seminar: This reading group will meet to discuss current approaches, new challenges, and new possibilities that are offered to legal and literary scholars when they use insights from both fields to illuminate their work. The seminar welcomes anyone interested in the many topics now addressed in this field, including the use of obscenity laws to regulate creative work, the representation of law in literature, law as literature, the application of literary methods to legal texts, the challenges of constructing “characters” appropriate to literary and legal settings, and the revitalization of law through reference to humanistic texts and approaches. Seminar coordinator: Robert Barsky (French and Italian) robert.barsky@vanderbilt.edu. 

Mexican Studies Seminar. The goal of this group is to raise the profile of research related to Mexico on the Vanderbilt campus and support members’ individual scholarly endeavors regarding this important nation bordering the United States. The group brings together faculty and graduate students from history, political science, literature, sociology, art, anthropology, music, and Latin American studies. At monthly meetings the group will discuss work-in-progress authored by members and invited scholars from beyond Vanderbilt. On Friday, March 13, a program entitled “Mexico on the Verge” will be held from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. in Buttrick 162. Speakers include Alex Aviña (history, Florida State University), Tanalís Padilla (history, Dartmouth), and Jaime Pensado (history, University of Notre Dame). In addition, César Burgos Dávila (ethnic studies, University of California, Berkeley) will give a public lecture on April 9 at 4 p.m. in Buttrick 123. Seminar coordinators: Helena Simonett (Latin American Studies) helena.simonett@vanderbilt.edu and Edward Wright-Rios (history) edward.wright-rios@vanderbilt.edu. Co-sponsored by the Center for Latin American Studies. 

A People's History of Nashville: This seminar invites those engaged in current social movements to gather and learn the history of the working and dispossessed classes of the city, and to reflect on how recovering the memory of past social struggle might inform future strategies. The seminar will host monthly meetings and visits to neighborhoods and landmarks, seeking respectful collaborations with scholars and organizations across the city pursuing similar projects. Upcoming events include a viewing of the film Selma on January 17 at 4:40 p.m. at the Green Hills cinema, and a talk on urban renewal in the Edgehill neighborhood of Nashville on January 24 (time and location TBA). Seminar coordinators: Tristan Call (anthropology) tristan.p.call@vanderbilt.edu and Austin Sauerbrei (community development and action) austin.b.sauerbrei@vanderbilt.edu. 

Race, Gender and Kinship: Spaces of Global Capitalism: This group hopes to address the shortcomings of economic formulas that ignore the psychic predispositions and pressures of global capitalism. Members will read Justice, Nature, and the Geography of Difference by David Harvey, which focuses on the dynamics of urbanization, the division of labor, and their effects on the environment. Later in the semester, the group will use Harvey’s analytical model to discuss the case study of Rana Dasgupta’s Capital: A Portrait of Twenty-First Century Delhi. With the bleak projected future of decreasing natural resources and increasing populations concentrated within dense urban spaces, Dasgupta’s work offers a crucial counter-narrative illustrating the catastrophic effects of globalization and capitalism on Delhi’s economic evolution. The first organizational meeting will take place on January 15 at 11 a.m. at the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Kirsten Mendoza (English) kirsten.n.mendoza@vanderbilt.edu, Emily Burchfield (environmental engineering, management and policy) emily.k.burchfield@vanderbilt.edu, and Gideon Park (religion) gideon.park@vanderbilt.edu. 

Religion and Culture in Late Antiquity. Late Antiquity is a term used by scholars to describe a historical period which includes both the end of classical civilizations and the first centuries of medieval societies in Mediterranean, Africa, Europe and the Near East. The seminar’s geographic definition of “Late Antiquity” will focus primarily on the cultures and societies of the Mediterranean world, but can also be broadly construed. Participation from ancient historians, medievalists, and scholars of Asia or other areas of research that may have overlapping interests is welcomed. The seminar will meet once per month (February 9, March 10, and April 13 at 12 p.m. at the Warren Center) for a discussion of current research by Vanderbilt faculty or Ph.D. students. Upcoming speakers include Adam Levine (Associate Curator of Ancient Art, Toledo Museum of Art) on January 20 at 12:10 p.m. in the Tillett lounge, room 128 at the Divinity School. Seminar coordinators: Mark Ellison (religion) mark.d.ellison@vanderbilt.edu, Robin Jensen (history of art) robin.jensen@vanderbilt.edu, and David Michelson (divinity) david.a.michelson@vanderbilt.edu. 

Science Studies Seminar 

This seminar brings together members of the Vanderbilt community with interests in the humanistic and social studies of science and technology. Activities include sharing work in progress, reading recent publications in the field, and hosting invited speakers. Faculty members and graduate students from across the university are welcome. Lunchtime meetings this semester are scheduled for January 15, February 26, March 26, and April 23 at 12 p.m. at the Warren Center. Contact seminar coordinators: Ole Molvig (Vanderbilt Institute for Digital Learning) ole.molvig@vanderbilt.edu or Alistair Sponsel (history) alistair.sponsel@vanderbilt.edu to be added to the group's email list. 

 

2013/2014 Fellows Program. "Diagnosis in Context: Culture, Politics, and the Construction of Meaning," co-directed by Vanessa Beasley (communication studies) and Arleen Tuchman (history). Participants in the program are Gregory Barz (musicology), Laura Carpenter (sociology), Kenneth MacLeish (Medicine, Health, and Society), and Mark Schoenfield (English). The 2013-2014 William S. Vaughn Visiting Fellow is Susan Cahn (history, State University of New York at Buffalo). 

2013/2014 Warren Center Graduate Student Fellows. Eight graduate students are participating in the Warren Center's eighth dissertation completion fellowship program. They are Emily August (English), Whitney Laster (sociology), Aoife Laughlin (history, Queen's University Belfast), John Maddox (Spanish & Portuguese), Paul Morrow (philosophy), Aubrey Porterfield (English), Ansley Quiros (history), and Jamie Shenton (anthropology). Emily August is the American Studies Fellow, Paul Morrow is the George J. Graham Jr. Fellow, Aubrey Porterfield is the Elizabeth E. Fleming Fellow, and John Maddox is the Mary and Joe Harper Fellow. 

2014/2015 Fellows Program. "Public Scholarship in the Humanities," co-directed by Joel Harrington (history) and Holly Tucker (French and Italian; Center for Biomedical Ethics & Society). Participants in the program are Marshall Eakin (history), Lisa Guenther (philosophy), Aimi Hamraie (Medicine, Health, and Society), Ifeoma Nwankwo (English), Lynn Ramey (French), Daniel Sharfstein (law), and Paul Stob (communication studies). The 2014-2015 William S. Vaughn Visiting Fellow is Lara Stein Pardo (anthropology). 

The First Book Panel 
The Warren Center and the Program in Career Development are co-sponsoring a panel discussion on book publishing on Thursday, February 13 at 4:10 pm in Buttrick 123. The talk will be geared primarily to junior faculty members and advanced graduate students (though anyone, of course, is welcome to attend). Speakers will be Courtney Berger, editor for the Duke University Press, and Timothy Mennel, editor for the University of Chicago Press. Panelists will address issues related to publishing one's first academic book in the humanities and qualitative social sciences. 

Mary Lou Roberts 
The Robert Penn Warren Center, the Max Kade Center for European Studies, the Department of History, the Department of Women's and Gender Studies, the Bishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center, and the Program in American Studies will present a talk by Mary Lou Roberts, Professor of History at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, on Thursday, April 10 at 4:10 pm in the Bishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center. The lecture will be titled "Rape Hysteria and the Sexual Economy of Race: French Accusations of Sexual Assault against African-American GIs, 1944-1946." 

Warren Center Graduate Student Fellows Lecture Series 
This spring, each of the Warren Center's eight graduate students will present a public lecture on his or her research. Most lectures take place in the conference room of the Warren Center at 4:10 pm, unless otherwise noted, and are followed by a reception. The presenters and dates are: Jamie Shenton (anthropology), March 13; Whitney Laster (sociology), March 20; Ansley Quiros (history), March 21; Aubrey Porterfield (English), March 26; John Maddox (Spanish & Portuguese), April 4; Emily August (English), April 9; Aoife Laughlin (history, Queen's University Belfast), 3:10 pm on April 14; Paul Morrow (philosophy), April 29. 

Mellon Institute in Digital and Public Humanities for Early-Career Scholars 
On May 12–16, 2014, twelve Vanderbilt University graduate students and recent PhDs participated in the first Mellon Institute in Digital and Public Humanities for Early-Career Scholars. Participants had a chance to learn from eminent scholars in the public and digital humanities and to get hands-on experience with a variety of digital tools. Hosted by the Robert Penn Warren Center for the Humanities, the Curb Center for Art, Enterprise and Public Policy, and the Center for Second Language Studies, this is part of a three-year program funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. 

18th-/19th-Century Colloquium. The colloquium brings together faculty, graduate students, and visiting scholars to explore ground-breaking scholarship on the arts, cultures, and histories of the 18th and 19th centuries. While loosely focused around British culture, the group also invites scholars from other linguistic and geographic fields to share work and join in the discussion. The group will hold their first meeting in the Warren Center on Friday, January 31 at 2 pm with guest speaker Daniel Hack (English, University of Michigan). The seminar will also host Elaine Freedgood (English, New York University) on Friday, February 28 at 2 pm in the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Rachel Teukolsky (English) rachel.teukolsky@vanderbilt.edu, Scott Juengel (English) scott.j.juengel@vanderbilt.edu, and Humberto Garcia (English) humberto.garcia@vanderbilt.edu. 

Behind Bars: The Complex Politics of Incarceration. In this seminar, participants will seek to have conversations with scholars in a wide range of fields and disciplines about a major social and political concern in the 21st century: the prison industrial complex. Through an examination of critical race and queer theory, transnational feminisms, and the work of grassroots activist organizations, participants will engage discourses of prison reform and prison abolition as two distinct methodologies that attempt to address the same pervasive social problem. Reading scholarly work as well as the work produced by activists, we hope to explore how the academy can engage these issues productively and materially. First spring meeting: TBD. Seminar coordinators: Alex Chambers (religion) alexandra.e.chambers@vanderbilt.edu and Tatiana McInnis (English) tatiana.d.mcinnis@vanderbilt.edu. 

Brazilian Studies Reading Group. This graduate student led seminar provides a forum for the discussion of contemporary Brazilian topics. Each semester the group will facilitate interdisciplinary dialogues with pre-circulated readings, discuss works-in-progress by graduate students and faculty, and invite recognized scholars to present new work. They will consider issues in the context of the recent protest movements, which began in São Paulo as a response to increased bus fares, before spreading through most urban centers across the country. Topics for discussion may include traditional power structures, social movements, access to equal education, workers' rights, political corruption, race relations, and income disparity. The first spring meeting will be Friday, January 24 at 12:15 pm in the Warren Center with guest speaker Celso Castilho (history). Seminar coordinators: Ashley Larson (Latin American Studies) ashley.d.larson@vanderbilt.edu, Max Pendergraph (history) joseph.m.pendergraph@vanderbilt.edu, and Guilherme Russo (political science) guilherme.russo@vanderbilt.edu. 

Circum-Atlantic Studies Seminar. This group reads and treats scholarship that is interdisciplinary in nature, focuses on at least two of the following regions – Africa, Europe, Latin America, the Caribbean, and North America – and treats some aspect of the trans-Atlantic slave trade, colonialism, and/or postcolonialism. The group will host David Wheat (history, Michigan State University) on Monday, February 17 at 4 pm in the Bishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center. Other guests include Richard Rabinowitz (President, American History Workshop) as the Black Atlantic Seminar Lecturer on Wednesday, February 12 at 4 pm in the Black Cultural Center, and Sophie White (American Studies, University of Notre Dame) on Monday, March 24 at 4 pm in the Black Cultural Center. Seminar coordinators: Celso Castilho (history) celso.t.castilho@vanderbilt.edu and Jane Landers (history) jane.landers@vanderbilt.edu. 

Digital Humanities Discussion Group. Digital humanities projects are rich new additions to the intellectual life of humanities scholars. If you are currently working on a digital humanities project or hope to do so in the near future, please join this discussion group to learn more about resources and innovations in this area. The direction of the group will be determined by the interests of those who participate. The first group meeting will be Monday, January 27 at noon in the Warren Center and the 2012-2013 HASTAC scholars will give their panel presentation from the 2013 HASTAC Conference. The seminar will also host David Fredrick (classical studies, University of Arkansas) on Friday, April 4 at noon at the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Lynn Ramey (French & Italian) lynn.ramey@vanderbilt.edu and Mona Frederick (Warren Center) mona.frederick@vanderbilt.edu. 

Exploring Boundaries: Race and Ethnicity in the 21st-Century United States. How racial and ethnic boundaries continue to shift and transform is an exciting and important topic of intellectual pursuit for scholars of all disciplines. This year-long seminar is designed to facilitate discussion, debate, and collaboration among individuals across campus who are interested in contemporary issues of race and ethnicity. At each of the monthly meetings, participants will bridge theory with practice, engaging with foundational texts in the field as well as with the work of their peers and that of invited speakers. Thematic topics of discussion will include methodological issues in studying race, heterogeneity within racial and pan-ethnic groups, and contemporary social problems. The first meeting will be Thursday, January 30 at noon in the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Samantha Perez (sociology) samantha.l.perez@vanderbilt.edu and Courtney Thomas (sociology) courtney.s.thomas@vanderbilt.edu. 

Film Theory & Visual Culture Seminar. This seminar aims to foster dialogue among faculty and graduate students across campus working in film, visual culture, art history, literature, and cultural studies, as well as anyone interested in theories of the image, philosophies of perception, aesthetics and critical theory, media histories, and the history of vision. The first meeting is Friday, January 17 at noon in the Warren Center with guest speaker Hillary Chute (English, University of Chicago). Other scheduled guest speakers include Mark Cooper (film & media studies, University of South Carolina) on Friday, January 31 at noon in the Warren Center, Sally O'Driscoll (English, Fairfield University) and Kevin Murphy (history of art) on Friday, March 28 at noon in the Warren Center, and Shawn Michelle Smith (visual and critical studies, Art Institute of Chicago) on Friday, April 18 at noon in the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Jennifer Fay (Film Studies and English) jennifer.m.fay@vanderbilt.edu, James McFarland (German) james.mcfarland@vanderbilt.edu, and Paul Young (Film Studies and English) paul.d.young@vanderbilt.edu. 

Gender and Sexuality Seminar. This seminar provides an interdisciplinary forum for the development of critical perspectives on gender and sexuality. The seminar examines how gender and sexuality shape human experience within and across cultures, in different time periods, and as part of social practice. Participants will choose the format with an aim toward balancing new scholarship by graduate students and established scholars, as well as exploring topics of particular interest to the group. First spring meeting will be on Wednesday, January 22 at noon in Buttrick 162. Seminar coordinator: Katherine Crawford (women's & gender studies; history) katherine.b.crawford@vanderbilt.edu. 

Geographic Imaginations and the Spatial Humanities. The spatial humanities, extending from the spatial turn in geographic studies and overlapping with digital humanities, were born of the promise of innovative humanities research that reaches beyond demonstrative mapmaking to spatial analysis of humanities data. Scholars have used Geographic Information Systems (GIS) to document historic and literary action through space and time, map linguistic and cultural relationships, and model or predict behavior based on specific parameters. This Robert Penn Warren Center seminar will collaboratively explore the historical contexts and theories of the spatial turn, examine specific case studies of spatially-oriented humanities research, and practice mapping our own data with existing spatial technologies. The first spring meeting will be on Friday, February 7 at noon in the Warren Center. The seminar will host guest speaker May Yuan (atmospheric and geographic sciences, University of Oklahoma) on Friday, February 21 at noon in the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Courtney Campbell (history) courtney.j.campbell.1@vanderbilt.edu, Beth Koontz (anthropology) beth.koontz@vanderbilt.edu, Zoe Leblanc (history) zoe.leblanc@vanderbilt.edu, and Scotti Norman (anthropology) scotti.m.norman@vanderbilt.edu. 

Group for Pre-modern Cultural Studies. The purpose of the group is to serve as a forum for those with interests in pre-modern studies, including not only history but also language and literature, chiefly, though not exclusively, Greek, Hebrew, and Latin, as well as music, art, and culture. The group meets monthly to discuss ongoing research by a faculty member, recent publications in the field, or the work of a visiting scholar. First spring meeting: TBD. Seminar coordinators: Bill Caferro (history) william.p.caferro@vanderbilt.edu and Leah Marcus (English) l.marcus@vanderbilt.edu. 

Literature and Law Seminar. This reading group will meet to discuss current approaches, new challenges, and new possibilities that are offered to legal and literary scholars when they use insights from both fields to illuminate their work. The seminar welcomes anyone interested in the many topics now addressed in this field, including the use of obscenity laws to regulate creative work, the representation of law in literature, law as literature, the application of literary methods to legal texts, the challenges of constructing "characters" appropriate to literary and legal settings, and the revitalization of law through reference to humanistic texts and approaches. The seminar will host Roberto Dainotto (romance studies, Duke University) on Wednesday, March 19 at noon in the Warren Center. Seminar coordinator: Robert Barsky (French & Italian and English), robert.barsky@vanderbilt.edu. 

*NEW SEMINAR* Material Culture in Context. This new seminar explores objects and materiality from multiple perspectives. It will examine the meaning attached to objects by the people who made and used them, partially through looking at the contexts (cultural, social, historical, spatial) in which objects appear. Participants will also explore how objects are transferred through space and time. This seminar should be of special interest to specialists in archaeology, anthropology, sociology, history, and history of art, as well as cultural and media studies, and philosophy. Interested participants can email allison.thompson@vanderbilt.edu to be added to the seminar mailing list. The first spring meeting will be on Tuesday, January 28 at noon in the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Beth Conklin (anthropology) beth.a.conklin@vanderbilt.edu and Mireille Lee (history of art) mireille.lee@vanderbilt.edu. 

Mexican Studies Seminar. The goal of this group is to raise the profile of research related to Mexico on the Vanderbilt campus and support members' individual scholarly endeavors regarding this important nation bordering the United States. The group brings together faculty and graduate students from history, political science, literature, sociology, art, anthropology, music, and Latin American studies. At monthly meetings the group will discuss work-in-progress authored by members and invited scholars from beyond Vanderbilt. First meeting will be on Monday, February 10 at 1:30 pm in the Warren Center with a roundtable discussion featuring Rita Plancarte (humanities, University of Sonora) and Alicia Llarena (literature, University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria) on "Mexico Now: Approaches to New and Old Identity Processes." Llarena will also be giving a public lecture on Tuesday, February 11 at 5 pm in Furman 209. Other guest speakers include Pablo Piccato (history, Columbia University) on Friday, March 21 at noon in the Warren Center for a meeting with the seminar, and he will also present a public lecture at 3 pm in Buttrick 123. Seminar coordinators: Helena Simonett (Latin American Studies) helena.simonett@vanderbilt.edu, Edward Wright-Rios (history) edward.wright-rios@vanderbilt.edu, and Christina Karageorgou-Bastea (Spanish) christina.karageorgou@vanderbilt.edu. 

2013/2014 Fellows Program. "Diagnosis in Context: Culture, Politics, and the Construction of Meaning," co-directed by Vanessa Beasley (communication studies) and Arleen Tuchman (history). Participants in the program are Gregory Barz (musicology), Laura Carpenter (sociology), Kenneth MacLeish (Medicine, Health, and Society), and Mark Schoenfield (English). The 2013-2014 William S. Vaughn Visiting Fellow is Susan Cahn (history, State University of New York at Buffalo). 

2013/2014 Warren Center Graduate Student Fellows. Eight graduate students are participating in the Warren Center's eighth dissertation completion fellowship program. They are Emily August (English), Whitney Laster (sociology), Aoife Laughlin (history, Queen's University Belfast), John Maddox (Spanish & Portuguese), Paul Morrow (philosophy), Aubrey Porterfield (English), Ansley Quiros (history), and Jamie Shenton (anthropology). Emily August is the American Studies Fellow, Paul Morrow is the George J. Graham Jr. Fellow, Aubrey Porterfield is the Elizabeth E. Fleming Fellow, and John Maddox is the Mary and Joe Harper Fellow. 

2014/2015 Fellows Program. "Public Scholarship in the Humanities," co-directed by Joel Harrington (history) and Holly Tucker (French; Medicine, Health, and Society). More information about this fellows program will be released later this fall. 

Sacred Ecology: Landscape Transformations and Ritual Practice Symposium. 
The 2011/2012 Faculty Fellows Program at the Robert Penn Warren Center for the Humanities will host a symposium titled "Sacred Ecology: Landscape Transformations and Ritual Practice" on August 30, 2013. The symposium serves as the culminating project of the Fellows' year-long seminar, led by Betsey Robinson (Department of History of Art), Tracy Miller (Department of History of Art), and John Janusek (Department of Anthropology). The guest speakers are Veronica Della Dora (geography, Royal Holloway, University of London), James Robson (East Asian languages and civilizations, Harvard University), Deena Ragavan (independent scholar), and Lindsay Jones (comparative studies, Ohio State University). The symposium will take place in the Sarratt Student Center, Room 189, with a reception afterwards at the Warren Center. Please check our website for more information. 

The Robert Penn Warren Center for the Humanities 25th Anniversary Celebration. The Robert Penn Warren Center for the Humanities will mark its 25th Anniversary this fall with a series of events to be held September 19 and September 20. On September 19 at 4:10 PM in Sarratt Cinema we will screen a documentary film highlighting programs and projects sponsored by the Warren Center over the past 25 years. On Friday, September 20 a series of panels exploring ways that discourse in the humanities has changed over the past 25 years will be featured at the First Amendment Center. Panel members are all former William S. Vaughn Visiting Fellows at the Warren Center. Please see our website for more details about the program. 

"Taking Our Pulse: Promises and Pitfalls of 21st-Century Medicine." In conjunction with the Southern Festival of Books and its sponsor, Humanities Tennessee, the Warren Center's 2013/2014 Fellows are planning a series of talks to take place during the book festival (October 11-13) that will highlight recent publications on this theme. 

The Humanities and Technology Camp (THATCamp). To help facilitate conversations on digital scholarship, the Warren Center's Digital Humanities Seminar, the Center for Second Language Studies, the Curb Center, the Vanderbilt Institute for Digital Learning, and the Center for Teaching are co-hosting THATCamp Vanderbilt University on November 1-2, 2013. Workshop sessions on Friday, November 1 will feature hands-on instruction on various digital humanities tools and topics. Sessions will continue on Saturday, November 2. More information will soon be available. 

18th-/19th-Century Colloquium. The colloquium brings together faculty, graduate students, and visiting scholars to explore ground-breaking scholarship on the arts, cultures, and histories of the 18th and 19th centuries. While loosely focused around British culture, the group also invites scholars from other linguistic and geographic fields to share work and join in the discussion. The group will hold their first meeting in the Warren Center on Friday, September 13 at 2pm with guest speaker Gerard Cohen-Vrignaud (English, University of Tennessee Knoxville). Other guest speakers include Mary Favret (English, Indiana University) on Friday, October 25 at 2pm in the Warren Center and Daniel O'Quinn (English, University of Guelph) on Friday, November 15 at 2pm in the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Rachel Teukolsky (English) rachel.teukolsky@vanderbilt.edu, Scott Juengel (English) scott.j.juengel@vanderbilt.edu, and Humberto Garcia (English) humberto.garcia@vanderbilt.edu. 

Behind Bars: The Complex Politics of Incarceration. In this seminar, participants will seek to have conversations with scholars in a wide range of fields and disciplines about a major social and political concern in the 21st century: the prison industrial complex. Through an examination of critical race and queer theory, transnational feminisms, and the work of grassroots activist organizations, participants will engage discourses of prison reform and prison abolition as two distinct methodologies that attempt to address the same pervasive social problem. Reading scholarly work as well as the work produced by activists, we hope to explore how the academy can engage these issues productively and materially. First fall meeting: TBD. Seminar coordinators: Alex Chambers (religion) alexandra.e.chambers@vanderbilt.edu and Tatiana McInnis (English) tatiana.d.mcinnis@vanderbilt.edu. 

Brazilian Studies Reading Group. This graduate student led seminar provides a forum for the discussion of contemporary Brazilian topics. Each semester the group will facilitate interdisciplinary dialogues with pre-circulated readings, discuss works-in-progress by graduate students and faculty, and invite recognized scholars to present new work. We will consider issues in the context of the recent protest movements, which began in São Paulo as a response to increased bus fares, before spreading through most urban centers across the country. Topics for discussion may include traditional power structures, social movements, access to equal education, workers' rights, political corruption, race relations, and income disparity. Meetings and lectures will sharpen our analyses and understanding of contemporary Brazilian problems and the issues facing its citizens. The first meeting will be Friday, September 6 at 3:30pm in the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Ashley Larson (Latin American Studies) ashley.d.larson@vanderbilt.edu, Max Pendergraph (history) joseph.m.pendergraph@vanderbilt.edu, and Guilherme Russo (political science) guilherme.russo@vanderbilt.edu. 

Circum-Atlantic Studies Seminar. This group reads and treats scholarship that is interdisciplinary in nature, focuses on at least two of the following regions – Africa, Europe, Latin America, the Caribbean, and North America – and treats some aspect of the trans-Atlantic slave trade, colonialism, and/or postcolonialism. First fall meeting: TBD. Seminar coordinators: Celso Castilho (history) celso.t.castilho@vanderbilt.edu and Jane Landers (history) jane.landers@vanderbilt.edu. 

Digital Humanities Discussion Group. Digital humanities projects are rich new additions to the intellectual life of humanities scholars. If you are currently working on a digital humanities project or hope to do so in the near future, please join this discussion group to learn more about resources and innovations in this area. The direction of the group will be determined by the interests of those who participate. First fall meeting: TBD. Seminar coordinators: Lynn Ramey (French & Italian) lynn.ramey@vanderbilt.edu and Mona Frederick (Warren Center) mona.frederick@vanderbilt.edu. 

Exploring Boundaries: Race and Ethnicity in the 21st-Century United States. How racial and ethnic boundaries continue to shift and transform is an exciting and important topic of intellectual pursuit for scholars of all disciplines. This year-long seminar is designed to facilitate discussion, debate, and collaboration among individuals across campus who are interested in contemporary issues of race and ethnicity. At each of our monthly meetings, participants will bridge theory with practice, engaging with foundational texts in the field as well as with the work of their peers and that of invited speakers. Thematic topics of discussion will include methodological issues in studying race, heterogeneity within racial and pan-ethnic groups, and contemporary social problems. The first meeting will be Tuesday, September 17 at noon in the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Samantha Perez (sociology) samantha.l.perez@vanderbilt.edu and Courtney Thomas (sociology) courtney.s.thomas@vanderbilt.edu. 

Film Theory & Visual Culture Seminar. This seminar aims to foster dialogue among faculty and graduate students across campus working in film, visual culture, art history, literature, and cultural studies, as well as anyone interested in theories of the image, philosophies of perception, aesthetics and critical theory, media histories, and the history of vision. The first meeting is Friday, September 27 at noon in the Warren Center with guest speaker Lutz Koepnick (German and film). Other scheduled guest speakers include Paul K. Saint-Amour (English, University of Pennsylvania) and Karen Beckman (History of Art, University of Pennsylvania) on Friday, October 25 at noon in the Warren Center, Lesley Stern (visual arts, UC-San Diego) on Friday, November 8 at noon in the Warren Center, and Ackbar Abbas (comparative literature, UC-Irvine) on Friday, December 6 at noon in the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Jennifer Fay (Film Studies and English) jennifer.m.fay@vanderbilt.edu, James McFarland (German) james.mcfarland@vanderbilt.edu, and Paul Young (Film Studies and English) paul.d.young@vanderbilt.edu. 

Gender and Sexuality Seminar. This seminar provides an interdisciplinary forum for the development of critical perspectives on gender and sexuality. The seminar examines how gender and sexuality shape human experience within and across cultures, in different time periods, and as part of social practice. Participants will choose the format with an aim toward balancing new scholarship by graduate students and established scholars, as well as exploring topics of particular interest to the group. First fall meeting: TBD. Please email allison.thompson@vanderbilt.edu if you would like to be on the mailing list. Seminar coordinator: Katherine Crawford (women's & gender studies; history) katherine.b.crawford@vanderbilt.edu. 

Geographic Imaginations and the Spatial Humanities. The spatial humanities, extending from the spatial turn in geographic studies and overlapping with digital humanities, were born of the promise of innovative humanities research that reaches beyond demonstrative mapmaking to spatial analysis of humanities data. Scholars have used Geographic Information Systems (GIS) to document historic and literary action through space and time, map linguistic and cultural relationships, and model or predict behavior based on specific parameters. In this Robert Penn Warren Center seminar, we will collaboratively explore the historical contexts and theories of the spatial turn, examine specific case studies of spatially-oriented humanities research, and practice mapping our own data with existing spatial technologies. The seminar will include a monthly reading group and complementary workshops, along with visits from two scholars in the field of spatial humanities. The first fall meeting will be Friday, September 6 at noon in the Warren Center. Seminar coordinators: Courtney Campbell (history) courtney.j.campbell.1@vanderbilt.edu, Beth Koontz (anthropology) beth.koontz@vanderbilt.edu, and Scotti Norman (anthropology) scotti.m.norman@vanderbilt.edu. 

Group for Pre-modern Cultural Studies. The purpose of the group is to serve as a forum for those with interests in pre-modern studies, including not only history but language and literature, chiefly, though not exclusively, Greek, Hebrew, and Latin, as well as music, art, and culture. The group meets monthly to discuss ongoing research by a faculty member, recent publications in the field, or the work of a visiting scholar. First fall meeting: TBD. Seminar coordinators: Bill Caferro (history) william.p.caferro@vanderbilt.edu and Leah Marcus (English) l.marcus@vanderbilt.edu. 

Literature and Law Seminar. This reading group will meet to discuss current approaches, new challenges, and new possibilities that are offered to legal and literary scholars when they use insights from both fields to illuminate their work. The seminar welcomes anyone interested in the many topics now addressed in this field, including the use of obscenity laws to regulate creative work, the representation of law in literature, 
law as literature, the application of literary methods to legal texts, the challenges of 
constructing "characters" appropriate to literary and legal settings, and the revitalization of law through reference to humanistic texts and approaches. First fall meeting: TBD. Seminar coordinator: Robert Barsky (French & Italian and English), robert.barsky@vanderbilt.edu. 

Mexican Studies Seminar. The goal of this group is to raise the profile of research related to Mexico on the Vanderbilt campus and support members' individual scholarly endeavors regarding this important nation bordering the United States. The group brings together faculty and graduate students from history, political science, literature, sociology, art, anthropology, music, and Latin American studies. At monthly meetings the group will discuss work-in-progress authored by members and invited scholars from beyond Vanderbilt. First meeting will be on Friday, September 13 at noon in the Warren Center with guest speaker Arturo Santamaría Gómez (Professor of Sociology, Universidad Autónoma de Sinaloa, Mazatlán). Seminar coordinators: Helena Simonett (Latin American Studies) helena.simonett@vanderbilt.edu and Edward Wright-Rios (history) edward.wright-rios@vanderbilt.edu.