The New "Dark Ages"

Sponsoring Organization(s)

International Society for the Study of Medievalism

Organizer Name

Amy S. Kaufman; Usha Vishnuvajjala

Organizer Affiliation

Independent Scholar; American Univ.

Presider Name

Usha Vishnuvajjala

Paper Title 1

Religion, Science, and Conspiracy Theories: The Flat Earth in the Middle Ages and Today

Presenter 1 Name

Shiloh Carroll

Presenter 1 Affiliation

Tennessee State Univ.

Paper Title 2

Not as Sexy as We Thought: Echoes of the Dark Ages in Modern Sexual Conduct for Women

Presenter 2 Name

Amy Burge

Presenter 2 Affiliation

Cardiff Univ.

Paper Title 3

Medievalism, Medievalists, and Conditional Reproductive Justice

Presenter 3 Name

Rebecca Huffman

Presenter 3 Affiliation

Univ. of Michigan-Ann Arbor

Paper Title 4

A Dark Stage for the Dark Ages: Medieval Theatre as Protest (Then and Now)

Presenter 4 Name

Carol L. Robinson

Presenter 4 Affiliation

Kent State Univ.-Trumbull

Start Date

12-5-2018 3:30 PM

Session Location

Schneider 1280

Description

The “Dark Ages” are back in the news, or at least the term is: the label has been applied to everything from the increasing erosion of women’s rights across the globe to the dystopian television worlds of The Handmaid’s Tale and Into the Badlands. Many people seem afraid that the world is inevitably returning to a “medieval” past of patriarchy, superstition, religious homogeny, censorship, and even monarchy. Medievalists, meanwhile, leap at these dim portraits of the Middle Ages to defend it from oversimplification. But sometimes, we dispel popular misconceptions without addressing continuities between the present and the past. This panel traces strong connections between the worst aspects of the Middle Ages and our possible futures, and will interrogate contemporary anxieties and illusions about the past in light of real medieval history, literature, science, and art.

Amy S. Kaufman

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May 12th, 3:30 PM

The New "Dark Ages"

Schneider 1280

The “Dark Ages” are back in the news, or at least the term is: the label has been applied to everything from the increasing erosion of women’s rights across the globe to the dystopian television worlds of The Handmaid’s Tale and Into the Badlands. Many people seem afraid that the world is inevitably returning to a “medieval” past of patriarchy, superstition, religious homogeny, censorship, and even monarchy. Medievalists, meanwhile, leap at these dim portraits of the Middle Ages to defend it from oversimplification. But sometimes, we dispel popular misconceptions without addressing continuities between the present and the past. This panel traces strong connections between the worst aspects of the Middle Ages and our possible futures, and will interrogate contemporary anxieties and illusions about the past in light of real medieval history, literature, science, and art.

Amy S. Kaufman