Revolutions
in History
March
12-14, 2009
Boston, MA
Call
For Proposals
Revolutions
change history. The
English,
American,
French,
Russian,
and
Chinese Revolutions ushered
in new constitutional, political, social, and economic
structures.
Martin Luther and
John Calvin overturned
the medieval Catholic Church, and launched the Protestant
Reformation.
Copernicus and
Newton altered
our view of the physical world and our place within
it;
Darwin and
Freud offered
new paradigms about how we came to be and why we behave the
way we do. The
agricultural revolution spurred
the rise of cities, and the industrial revolution raised
the specter of class conflict at the same time that it
elevated the standard of living for many people. The
railroad and
the
automobile transformed
economic, social, and cultural life, as did the
printing press,
telephone, computers and the internet. Discovery of
antibiotics, vaccines, and gene mapping have brought
medical breakthroughs that have saved lives.
Louis Sullivan,
Picasso,
Jackson Pollack,
John Cage,
Louis Armstrong,
Miles Davis,
and
Bob Dylan have
pushed traditional artistic forms to new levels. Within the
United States, some scholars believe the
American Civil War and
the
New Deal qualify
as revolutions. Outside the United States,
Mary Wollstonecraft,
Karl Marx,
and
Mahatma Gandhi challenged
the existing order and sought to create a different kind of
society.
Sun Yat-sen,
Simon Bolivar,
Toussaint L’Ouverture,
Mustafa Kemal Atatürk,
and
Nelson Mandela, and
many leaders of anti colonial and anti-western revolutions
have sought independence from western imperialism. One way
or another, we have been shaped by these twists and turns
in history.
New ideas, individuals that made a difference, and context
have converged to produce these and other revolutions. Do
they lead to progress or regression, promote optimism and
faith in the future or nostalgia and reaction in favor of
the past, produce unintended as well as intended
consequences, and reward some at the expense of others are
among the immediate questions that revolutions raise. From
a broader perspective, other questions come to the fore
that are at the heart of what history is:
how do revolutions undo and reconstruct patterns of social
and political interactions; how do they emerge from the
values, beliefs, political ideas and institutions of a
particular place and time; why do differences lead in one
instance to cooperation and in another to conflict; what
does a comparative study of different revolutions
contribute to our knowledge; and how do revolutions promote
the diffusion of knowledge and innovation that advance our
civilization.
The NCHE invites
proposals for
presentations and
poster sessions that
address the theme of the conference. A committee composed
of
NCHE trustees,
historians,
teachers,
and
educators will
review all proposals and make a final determination that
takes into account factors including the following:
(1) history content, (2) relevance to the theme, (3)
imagination, creativity, and innovation, (4) value added
for history teachers, (5) interactive components, and (6)
suitability for various grade levels.
Submitting
a Proposal
To submit a proposal, use NCHE's online form. Complete each
red starred (***)
blank and click the submit button. If your proposal has
been successfully transmitted, a message at the top of the
page will tell you, "Thank you, your proposal has
been submitted." If all fields are not filled in properly,
it will request that you complete the starred fields.
Please carefully check the completeness of the form before
clicking the submit button.
You will receive an email from NCHE within 48 hours
regarding the status of your proposal. If you do not
receive an email receipt, please contact NCHE at
440-835-1776 or email conference@nche.net.
Click here
for the
online form.
