|
Burden, Benefit, Trace: The Legacies of
Benevolence
12-15 December 2003
The University of Queensland, Ipswich
Campus
Long before Rudyard Kipling urged his readers to 'take up
the white man's burden,' benevolence was integral to cultural
domination, whether through the formal structures of empire,
or through associated charitable activities such as the
provision of medical aid, education, or missions. As the rise
of the middle classes and the emphasis on Puritan conscience
increasingly replaced the notion of aristocratic patronage and
noblesse oblige, 'benevolence' functioned as an umbrella term
under which imperial and neo-imperial domination, particularly
cultural domination, were rationalised and promoted within
government and among the subjects of empire. For the British,
the 'burden of benevolence' and the work of 'civilising' were
seen as differentiating their own from other European imperial
enterprises. To a certain extent, a similar self-perception is
evident now in the policies and practices of the contemporary
world's dominant imperial power, the United States. This
conference will consider benevolence, and representations of
benevolence, in a wide variety of forms. Papers on the
following topics will be welcomed:
- anthropology and academic study
- culture
- ecology and environment
- education and training
- governance and administration
- history
- literary representation
- medicine and welfare
- migration and resettlement
- military and police activity
- religion and missionary activity
- trade and commerce
Abstracts should be submitted using the online
abstract submission form no later than 30 April 2003.
Benefit, Burden, Trace: The Legacies of Benevolence
is an interdisciplinary conference hosted by the Postcolonial
Research Group in the School of English, Media
Studies and Art History at the The University of
Queensland.
Helen Gilbert (Co-chair)
Leigh Dale
(Co-chair) |
