"Trust Issues: Community, Contingency, and Security in North America"

Keynote Speakers: Prof. Dr. Martin Hartmann (Philosophy, University of Luzern, CH) and Prof. Dr. Susan Castillo (American Studies, King’s College London, UK).

From the misprision of financial institutions to the NSA scandal, recent years have seen several revelations calling the architecture of American society into question. The United States has been rocked by crises of faith that have cast new doubt on the American Dream. Historical breaches of trust are also at the fore. The fortieth anniversary of Watergate is a further reminder that issues of trust constitute a central concern in North American studies.

Our conference engages with the significance of trust for social cohesion and the consequences of its withdrawal from social, political, and financial institutions. We also welcome papers exploring how these processes are represented in literature, film, and other media. Where can we place our trust, culturally and socially, given a multitude of informational sources and authorities? How can America’s damaged politico-cultural institutions be stabilized, transformed, or replaced? These questions will be pursued across a wide range of disciplines and perspectives, bringing together established scholars and upcoming researchers.

The full call for papers can be found here; the  deadline for submissions is February 9, 2014. For further information, please contact gsnas.conference2014@gsnas.fu-berlin.de.