Religion+ Group Announces Schedule for Session 4

The Religion+ research group at Duke Kunshan University is pleased to announce its Tuesday Night Conversation Series, Religion+X.

In session 4 these will take place at the earlier time of 6pm-730pm and feature DKU religious studies professors James Miller, Tommaso Tesei and Ben Van Overmeire in informal conversation with other DKU professors on a wide range of topics. Snacks and drinks will be provided, and students are warmly invited to join in the conversation with the professors.  Events are planned to be in person, but may be moved online in accordance with Covid policies.

Location: Water Pavilion on DKU campus

The  line-up is as follows. Continue reading “Religion+ Group Announces Schedule for Session 4”

Undergraduate Research Conference Information Session, March 20 at 8pm

The deadline for submitting abstracts for the Undergraduate Humanities Research Conference is March 21, 2023. To help students prepare their abstracts, Professor James Miller, co-director of the Humanities Research Center, will give a information session on Monday 20 March from 8-9pm (Zoom 6952900771).

In the information session you will learn

  • advantages of participating in the conference
  • advantages of presenting a paper at the conference
  • the rules for which types of papers will be accepted and which will be rejected
  • how the selection process works
  • how to write a good title and a good abstract

All students who are considering participating in the conference are strongly encouraged to attend.

China and the World, Undergraduate Humanities Research Conference, April 28-29

The Humanities Research Center is pleased to announce its annual Undergraduate Humanities Research Conference, China and the World, which will be held in person at Duke Kunshan University from April 28-29, 2023. The conference will feature approximately 40 undergraduate research papers and 4 keynote addresses. Students who are selected for the conference will also attend an exclusive seminar with one of the keynote speakers. Continue reading “China and the World, Undergraduate Humanities Research Conference, April 28-29”

Religion+ Group Announces Tuesday Night Conversation Series

The Religion+ research group at Duke Kunshan University is pleased to announce its Tuesday Night Conversation Series, Religion+X

The series will take place every Tuesday from 6:30pm-8pm and feature DKU religious studies professors James Miller, Tommaso Tesei and Ben Van Overmeire in informal conversation with other DKU professors on a wide range of topics. Snacks and drinks will be provided, and students are warmly invited to join in the conversation with the professors.  Events are planned to be in person, but may be moved online in accordance with Covid policies.

Planned location: Water Pavilion on DKU campus

The provisional line-up is as follows. Continue reading “Religion+ Group Announces Tuesday Night Conversation Series”

Religion and Politics

The Humanities Research Center and the Division of Arts and Humanities, in collaboration with the Undergraduate Studies program, are pleased to present a lecture and discussion on religion and politics, on Monday 26 September, 2022 via Zoom and in person in Barcelona. The event comprises a guest lecture, which will be presented via Zoom, and a discussion, which will take place in person in the Barcelona student residence. Continue reading “Religion and Politics”

Student Opportunities in Computational Humanities and Social Sciences

The Humanities Research Center recently launched its Computational Humanities and Social Science: A Seminar and Workshop Series, led by Profs. Zhaojin Zeng, Jaehee Choi and Alice Xiang. The workshop series will be bringing a number of leading experts to discuss the use of computational methods in the service of humanistic and social science inquiry.

Continue reading “Student Opportunities in Computational Humanities and Social Sciences”

Humanities Fall Conference: Ciencia y Caridad 科学与慈善

The Humanities Research Center is pleased to announce its fall conference, Ciencia y Caridad 科学与慈善(“Science and Charity”), based on Picasso’s painting of the same name, exhibited in the Picasso Museum in Barcelona. The conference will be held in person in Barcelona on October 7-8, 2022 and will be accessible to the global DKU community via Zoom. Conference attendees are invited to a private viewing of the painting and a gala reception at the Picasso museum.

Register to receive Zoom information. Continue reading “Humanities Fall Conference: Ciencia y Caridad 科学与慈善”

Weakening Strategies: Vattimo and Chinese Thought

Gianni Vattimo (1936–) is one of Europe’s foremost contemporary philosophers, whose work has had a lasting influence on a broad range of fields including sexuality, theology, art and politics. He is known chiefly for the idea of “weak thought” (pensiero debole), which aims to weaken the strong narration of Western metaphysics and the violence of dogmatic positions. From such “weakening strategies” develop an ethic and political philosophy that opposes totalitarianism and fascism, a project that Vattimo undertook personally as a Member of the European Parliament. In his later work, Vattimo also connected weak thought to themes of kenosis (self-emptying), sacrifice, and secularization in religious and theological studies. In an era that emphasizes might, power, and strength, now is precisely the time to pay attention to weakness as a philosophical concept and ethical value, and to do so in a globalized, even multipolar context. 

In this regard Chinese thought, and especially Daoist philosophy, can become a rich interlocutor with Vattimo’s philosophy. The Daode jing 道德經 emphasizes virtues of softness and passivity, stating that  “The soft and weak overcome the hard and strong (柔弱勝剛強).” The classical Daoist philosopher Zhuangzi, moreover, is known for his emphasis on perspectivalism, understanding the limits of knowledge, and critiquing those who claim to have a complete understanding of truth. Daoism and other forms of Chinese philosophy have an important role to play in investigating the concept of weakness, in conversation with Vattimo’s philosophical and ethical project. Continue reading “Weakening Strategies: Vattimo and Chinese Thought”

The Ukraine Crisis: A Roundtable Discussion

Duke University’s Franklin Humanities Institute will convene a roundtable discussion on the Ukraine Crisis on Wednesday March 9, 2022 at 9pm China time. The discussion will be held on Zoom, and advance registration is required.

The roundtable aims to discuss the causes of and future prospects for the Ukraine crisis, the impact on the world geopolitical situation, and perceptions of the crisis in Chinese official and social media.

Click here for more information

Click here to register

Volunteer for Planet X

Want to be a member of a whole new world? Our game project “Planet X” awaits!

Details of the Project

The project is sponsored by the Humanities Research Centre PETAL lab.

We adopt the model of strategic games to create an “alternative world”, in which one plays as a will of the state on “Planet X”, thus separated from his/her real-life identity & socioeconomic status, and explore people’s possible ethical choices facing the dilemma between development and the need of countering environmental crisis. Continue reading “Volunteer for Planet X”