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Vital Theory 2014: Acknowledgements and Recap

December is never the best time to try to catch up with too many things at the same time. So, firstly, accept my apologies for the delay in writing some words about this year’s Vital Theory: The Meanings of Memory. Even though a couple of weeks have passed by since the symposium took place at …

Vital Theory 2014: Provisional Programme

This is a provisional programme for the day. BOOK YOUR TICKETS HERE. 9:30-10:00 — Coffee and Registration 10:00-10:30  — Keynote speakers Dr Tracey Potts — Poppies and Bones: Kitsch and the Aesthetics of Remembrance Dr Andrew Goffey — TBA 10:30-12:15 — Position Papers The meanings of memory — by Stefanie Petschick This year Vital Theory asks the question …

Vital Theory 2014: The Meanings of Memory

“Vital Theory”, the annual symposium organised by the postgraduates at the University of Nottingham’s Centre for Critical Theory, is being held off-campus for the first time this year. The fourth ever “Vital Theory” will be held at the Nottingham Contemporary, an inviting venue which is perfect for this year’s theme: “The Meanings of Memory”. This …

Vital Theory 2014: Directions

Vital Theory 2014: The Meanings of Memory is being held at Nottingham Contemporary, an art centre in the Lace Market area of Nottingham’s city centre. These are the directions to the venue assuming one is coming from another part of the city or to Nottingham by either coach or train. If you are coming by car, …

Welcome

Vital Theory is an annual symposium organised by postgraduate students at the University of Nottingham’s Centre for Critical Theory. Now in its fourth year, participants will present on ideas of memory and commemoration. In contrast to reflections on the past, speakers also look to the future and consider how the digital age might affect our right …

Vital Theory 2013: Human Rights and Neoliberalism

One of the things that characterises the current era is the intensified involvement of global governmental institutions, such as the UN, the World Bank the IMF, in conflict and post-conflict situations particularly in what is, perhaps vulgarly, termed “the global south”. In other words, we live in an age of what Naomi Klein has called …

Vital Theory 2013 – Eva Giraud’s keynote

We promised we’d publish talks, so I thought I’d kick things off by putting my own up. Mine was less of a keynote, more of a discussion about what we were doing in the centre this year and my thoughts about theory more generally – so I thought I’d write it up in a more …

Vital Theory 2013: thanks and a few words…

Two days after our postgraduate symposium, Vital Theory, and I’m still feeling enthusiastic about the discussions we had and people we met. It’s easy to end (what can often be) a long and tiring term, feeling a little deflated – and I certainly felt that VT was the antidote to that. In the days to …

Vital Theory 2013

We are pleased to announce the third annual Vital Theory symposium will take place on Friday the 13th of December 2013 at the University of Nottingham. Vital Theory is an academic symposium organised by postgraduate students at the University of Nottingham’s Centre for Critical Theory. The first of these took place in 2011, and it has since grown …

Thank you!

The Vital Theory collective would like to thank all the delegates that attended the Vital Theory 2012: The Politics of Hope symposium for making it such an interesting and intellectually stimulating day. Thanks also to those who helped us to organise and run the day’s events, to the lecturers who participated, and to the catering staff for …