After Empire: Intellectual Life in a Post-Imperial World
Date: Thursday 28 may
Time: TBC
Venue: New College, The New Space
The Oxford Graduate Conference in Intellectual History will take place on Thursday, 28 May 2026 at The New Space at New College, Oxford.
We are interested in receiving papers from current graduate students relating to intellectual life in a post-imperial world across intellectual history and related disciplines.
Should we think of life after empire as a post-revolutionary cleaning up of bodies and rubble, a fundamental disorientation and dislocation of its former citizens and subjects, or a humane liberation of the many from the hands of the few? Or have empires sometimes simply withered away, disappeared by agreement, or because they carried the seeds of their own destruction within them? All of these might constitute aspects of many post-imperial moments, from Italy in the 5th century to Algeria in the 20th, from the Andes to East Asia.
The world after empire might also invite examination of the true nature of empire. Were they reflections of the necessity of monopolies of force in our political communities, thus rendering any “post-imperial” world a utopian dream, or should they serve as a warning of the overreach of coercion and power ultimately embodied in more inclusive and participative structures?
These and many more questions might be reflected in the papers at this year’s conference. We invite proposals that understand “empire” in the broadest possible terms, as political, social, cultural, or intellectual structures, from antiquity to our present moment, and to join us in Oxford for a wide-ranging reflection on intellectual life in a post-imperial world.
Keynote: To Be Confirmed
Conference papers will be 15-20 minutes long and presented as part of panels, with 10 minutes set aside for questions. To apply to present, please submit an abstract of max. 300 words and a one-page academic CV.
The deadline for submissions is 10 April. Successful applicants will be notified by 24 April.
Please submit your abstract via this form.
For any questions or queries, please get in touch with the convenors via oxford.ihconference@gmail.com
