The 18th Annual Graduate Conference in European History (GRACEH)
15-17 April 2024 / Deadline to submit an abstract: 17 January 2024.
European University Institute Florence (EUI) / ZOOM
What constitutes sensible methodologies, and how do we imagine, construct, narrate, and visualise senses and sensations in history?
The 18th Annual Graduate Conference in European History (GRACEH) focus on sensational events employs the word sense in its broadest possible meaning. With this, the conference invites historians to think about how we understand and perceive the past, what meaning we ascribe to the objects that we study, the role of sensory impressions, the emotions that are evoked in and by our narratives and how we conceptualise normalcy and sensationalism. What even makes an event sensational? How do we imagine, construct, narrate and visualise senses and sensations in history? In short – how do we make sense of history?
The GRACEH series was inaugurated in Budapest in 2007 and has been co-organised since 2010 by Central European University, the European University Institute, the University of Vienna, and more recently, the University of Oxford. Each year, it takes place at one of these institutions.
The central aim of GRACEH is to establish a network of graduate students and early career researchers in the field of European history, covering topics that range from the early modern period to the recent past. Serving as a platform for historiographical, methodological, and theoretical discussions among peers and senior academics, the conference encourages participants to present their ongoing thesis/dissertation projects within the thematic framework.
The conference is open to graduate students at all stages of research. We invite graduate students working on different topics and periods on a national, international, transnational, or comparative scale to explore the place of sensations, emotions, ideas, and senses in their projects. We encourage contributions with novel and diverse perspectives and interdisciplinary approaches. GRACEH 2024 warmly welcomes participants to join in person. While we offer a limited hybrid model, we emphasise fostering an engaging in-person experience.
In addition to students enrolled at the partner universities, students from other institutions can also apply for participation in the conference.
Learn more on the EUI website and in the call for papers.
Possible topics include but are not limited to:
1. (In)sensitivities and (res)sentiments - History of emotions
How did people express and embody grief, shame, love, and anger in the past? Do we consider feelings and emotions of the past as something natural or socially constructed? What role did, for example, emotions play in the outbreak of the French Revolution? Or what kind of event would enrage a 16th- century servant? Presentations within this topic could explore the historical role of feelings, affection, performativity, emotional communities, sensibility, and trauma.
2. Sensational Events, People, and Place
What stories can be told by statues, buildings and squares? How did certain events of the past become sensational, and on what grounds? Could sensational events, people and places in history represent society at large? The scope of this theme invites presentations discussing agency, organisation and social movements, actors, orators, revolutionaries, the creation of norms and traditions, narratives, discourses and public speaking, technologies, celebrity culture, scandals and tabloids.
3. Making Sense: History of Ideas, Concepts, and Thoughts
What impact have ideas, concepts, and thoughts had on cultural norms, values, and knowledge systems? How have advancements in communication technology influenced the dissemination of intellectual ideas and the dynamics of public discourse? How did conspiracy theories about the Moon landing affect public perception of scientific achievements and space exploration? What could make a cult successful in the 20th century? This topic can explore the role of intellectuals, the inner senses, ideas, ideologies and mental disabilities in historical research.
4. A Sense of Oneself - (Body) Language and Embodiment
How do we perceive and communicate with our own bodies? How have different cultures and societies interpreted and valued the body? How has our tolerance for pain in dental procedures evolved over time? What can eyebrows tell us about the beauty standards of a specific period? Discussions under this heading may investigate mind-body connections and self-perception; sensory experiences of death, sexuality, pleasure and the body's role in self-identity; embodiment of race and politics; violence, war, and the self in a bodily context; and bodily rituals.
5. History of the Senses
How were the five senses historically referred to, used, and manipulated? How can an understanding of sensory impressions build historical arguments? In this topic, we are looking for papers on the spectrum of (or not) hearing, touching, tasting, smelling, and seeing. For example: What did Manchester smell like in 1865? How did the increasing availability of sugar change the taste of chocolate? Presentations within this topic could explore transformations of sensory experiences through fashion, food, ornaments, art, literature, physical disabilities or sexuality.
6. The 6th sense?
How does the embodied experience of supernatural beliefs shape cultural practices, rituals, and societal norms across different historical periods and geographical locations? To what extent did astrology impact historical political decisions? Why did the persecution of witchcraft vary from region to region? This topic opens avenues for presentations about spirituality and dreams, astrology, horoscopes and divination, persecution, witchcraft and sorcery, supernatural phenomena, possessions, and exorcisms.