Diverse Lineages of Existentialism: Africana, Feminist, and Continental Philosophy

In recent years, existentialism has been revitalized by a new generation of scholars investigating a wide range of questions, including those of gender and race. They have brought to light ways in which existentialism has shaped, and been shaped by, Africana philosophy, Latin American philosophy, feminism, and the work of literary writers such as Richard Wright, Ralph Ellison, and more recently Alice Walker and Toni Morrison.

But much work remains to be done. Research on existentialism has been hampered by the isolation of scholars: some focus on Sartre, while others focus on Beauvoir, Fanon, or Merleau-Ponty; some devote their work to questions of race and others to gender; and some scholars emphasize literary texts, while others emphasize the more straightforwardly philosophical works.

Initiated by the publication of the Beauvoir Series at the University of Illinois Press, the goal of the conference is to overcome this isolation, bringing together a wide variety of scholars to share their research on the diverse lineages of existentialism.

Research questions include:
1. How have existentialist conceptions of freedom shaped, and been shaped by, feminist and postcolonial thought?
2. In what ways can the category of the Other, as conceived by existentialists, inform our understanding of oppression in its various forms?
3. How can we understand the connections between existentialism and Latin American liberation philosophy?
4. How has existentialist thought been shaped by non-existentialist thinkers such as Henri Bergson and Georges Bataille?
5. What is the relationship between the existentialisms of Sartre and Beauvoir?
6. How is existentialism relevant to questions in feminism and race theory?

Societies organizing conference program sessions:

Caribbean Philosophical Association: http://www.caribbeanphilosophicalassociation.org/

Collegium of Black Women Philosophers: http://www.cbwp.ktgphd.com/

Merleau-Ponty Circle: http://www.uri.edu/artsci/phl/impc/

North American Sartre Society: http://sartresociety.org/

PhiloSOPHIA: http://www.philosophiafeministsociety.org/

Roundtable on Latina Feminism: http://sites.jcu.edu/lfr/

Simone de Beauvoir Society: http://beauvoir.weebly.com/

Registration:

Registration (if paid prior to June 1, 2014):

Individual: $100*

Student/Emeritus/Underemployed: $45*

*Registration paid after June 1, 2014 will increase for all categories by $10.