Past Events

How Art Can Be Thought: A Handbook for Change

Allan deSouza
Berkeley Book Chats
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| Geballe Room, 220 Stephens Hall

What terms do we use to describe and evaluate art? How do we judge if art is good, and if it is for the social good? DeSouza investigates the terminology through which art is discussed, valued, and taught.

Judaism: The Genealogy of a Modern Notion

Daniel Boyarin
Berkeley Book Chats
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| Geballe Room, 220 Stephens Hall

Boyarin argues that the very concept of a religion of “Judaism” is an invention of the Christian church that was adopted by Jews only with the coming of modernity and the spread of Christian languages.

The Orphan Band of Springdale

Anne Nesbet
Berkeley Book Chats
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| Geballe Room, 220 Stephens Hall

Nesbet’s historical novel for younger readers takes place during World War II in Springdale, Maine. It tells the story of 11-year-old Gusta, who is sent to live in an orphanage run by her grandmother after her labor-organizer father is forced to flee the country.

Todd Gitlin

The Other 1968s: Counterrevolution, Communism and Desublimation
Avenali Lecture
Monday, Nov 5, 2018 6:30 pm
| BAMPFA, 2155 Center Street

In his exploration of a watershed political year, Todd Gitlin unearths a "thrust toward retrogression" that stands in stark contrast to the popular image of 1968 as a politically progressive moment.

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| Geballe Room, 220 Stephens Hall

Wong explores the intersection of writing and visual art in the autobiographical work of Art Spiegelman, Faith Ringgold, Leslie Marmon Silko, and other American writers-artists who experiment with hybrid forms of self-narration.

The Tar Baby: A Global History

Bryan Wagner
Berkeley Book Chats
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| Geballe Room, 220 Stephens Hall

Wagner offers a fresh analysis of this deceptively simple story of a fox, a rabbit, and a doll made of tar and turpentine, tracing its history and connections to slavery, colonialism, and global trade.

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| Geballe Room, 220 Stephens Hall

Inventing counterfactual histories — such as a Europe that never threw off Hitler, or a second term for JFK — is a common pastime of modern day historians. Gallagher probes how counterfactual history works and to what ends.

Patricia Williams in Conversation with Ramona Naddaff

When Not to Write Like a Lawyer: The Art of Genre Transgression
Art of Writing
Friday, Sep 14, 2018 4:00 pm
| Geballe Room, 220 Stephens Hall

Patricia Williams is the James L. Dohr Professor of Law at Columbia University. A scholar of race, gender, and law, she is a prolific writer across a variety of genres. Her books include The Alchemy of Race and Rights and Open House: Of Family, Food, Piano Lessons, and the Search for a Room of My Own. She is a columnist for the Nation.

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| Geballe Room, 220 Stephens Hall

Exploring the idea of "intimations" - social interactions that approach outright communication but do not quite reach it - G. R. F. (John) Ferrari offers a new framework for understanding different ways in which we communicate with each other.