UCD School of Politics & International Relations

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This week SPIRe, along with the UCD Women’s Studies Centre , are pleased to welcome the Dr. Alan Coffee, of Birkbeck College presenting on “Freedom as Independence: Wollstonecraft and the Grand Blessing of Life.”  Please note the time and venue for this even is Thursday, Nov. 8th from 18:00-20:00 in room L532 of the UCD Belfield Library Building.  All are welcome.

Abstract

Independence is a central and recurring theme in Wollstonecraft’s work. Independence should not be understood as an individualistic ideal that is in tension with the value of community but as an essential ingredient in successful and flourishing social relationships. I examine three aspects of this rich and complex concept that Wollstonecraft draws on as she develops her own notion of independence as a powerful feminist tool. First, independence is an egalitarian ideal that requires that all individuals, regardless of sex, are protected to a comparable extent in all areas of social, political and economic life, no matter whether this is in the public or private sphere. Secondly, so long as this egalitarian condition is not compromised, independence allows for individuals to perform differentiated social roles, including along gendered lines. Finally, the on-going and collective input of both women and men is required to ensure that the conditions necessary for social independence are maintained. In Wollstonecraft’s hands, then, independence is a powerful ideal that allows her to argue that women must be able to act on their own terms as social and political equals, doing so as women whose perspectives and interests may differ from men’s.

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The Institute for British Irish Studies (IBIS) and the School of Politics and International Relations in University College Dublin (UCD) would like to invite you to the screening of the movie As If I Am Not There on Tuesday, the 6^th of November 2012, 6-8pm in theatre 1, Newman Building, University College Dublin (UCD). The screening will be followed by a discussion with the film director Juanita Wilson.

Juanita Wilson’s debut feature, As If I Am Not There, serves as a timely reminder of the atrocities suffered during the Bosnian War of the 1990s, and the difficulty in resuming any sense of normality in its aftermath. The drama is taken from true stories revealed during the International Criminal Tribunal in The Hague.

Samira is a modern schoolteacher in Sarajevo who takes a job in a small country village just as the war is beginning to ramp up. When Serbian soldiers overrun the village, shoot the men and keep the women as labourers (the older ones) and sex objects (the younger ones), Samira is subjected to the basest form of treatment imaginable.

Oscar nominated and IFTA winning filmmaker Juanita Wilson is a renowned Irish director and writer from Dublin. She has been awarded an Irish Film and Television Award for best film, best script, and best director, among other international recognition.

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SPIRe’s Institute for British Irish Studies (IBIS), in collaboration with the University of Ulster Transitional Justice Institute is please to welcome Ms Saraswathi Menon Director of Policy, UN Women to discuss the “UNSC Resolution 1325 and the Work of UN Women” on October 25th from 3-4pm (15:00-16:00) in the Research Boardroom of the UCD Research Building.  All are welcome but space is limited to please RSVP to ibis@ucd.ie by October 23rd.