Rethinking Early Modern Collegialities: A Conference in Celebration of the 50th Anniversary of the Founding of The Toronto Renaissance and Reformation Colloquium, 1964–2014
8 November 2014
In celebration of fifty years of collegial inquiry and discussion at the TRRC, the conference brings together a roster of scholars from different disciplines and generations – from graduate students to professors emeriti -- to reflect on the many ways that collegialities, communities, confraternities, covens, and private friendships made the early modern world go round. In varied forms these human alliances molded the culture, arts, sciences, religion, politics, and commerce that distinguished the Renaissance, Reformation, and Baroque eras. In those times, technologies, notably the printing press, also reshaped the ways that people communicated and connected, as the computer and the web have transformed the work of modern scholars who study them. To explore these themes in an innovative and energizing way, the conference will offer several forms of inquiry in a single day. It will open with a plenary lecture by the eminent historian of science Paula Findlen, of Stanford University, who will speak about Galileo and his network of friends. There will be two sessions with specialized papers arranged to make connections across disciplines. A panel of Canadian and American practitioners will discuss the impacts of digital technologies for contemporary scholarship about the early modern period. A concluding panel discussion will bring together some of the founders of the TRRC along with younger colleagues to reflect on how Renaissance and Reformation studies have evolved in the past fifty years and where they may be going next. Colleagues in attendance are invited to contribute to the discussion in the sessions and during the breaks. For further information, contact Prof. Konrad Eisenbichler at konrad.eisenbichler@utoronto.ca
