CFP: Cultural Studies and Marxism Book Series

Call for Proposals: Cultural Studies and Marxism Book Series

Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield International   

Book Series Editor: Jaafar Aksikas

The Cultural Studies and Marxism book series is now seeking proposals for original books and edited volumes.  The series is a timely and valuable contribution to the larger field of contemporary cultural studies. The global capitalist crisis of the twenty-first century has prompted renewed interest in critical political economy and Marxist theory. At the same time, publishing institutions committed to a robust articulation between cultural studies, critical political economy, and Marxism are almost non-existent. The series is dedicated to addressing this situation by highlighting and making available important (and emergent) scholarship at the intersection of these three fields.

The aim of the series is to publish important theoretical as well as empirical and historical contributions as the basis for vigorous intellectual debate and exchange among cultural studies practitioners and scholars. We are convinced that a project of this kind can make an important contribution to the revitalization and renewal of the politically committed intellectual project of cultural studies. As such, the series also promises to be a vital component of the struggle to produce useful knowledge that enables us to change the social world we live in and make it better and more humane. 

The peer-reviewed series will publish original monographs and edited collections across the bounds of academic disciplinary agendas, and across the divisions and institutions of cultural studies. We are keen for the series to include as wide a range of voices, practices, formats, approaches, positions, and interests as possible, so while the ‘traditional’ scholarly monograph is welcomed, we would also encourage other formats, such as edited collections, treatises and manifestos. 

The series also seeks to be a space where connections amongst Cultural Studies practitioners across generations and locations are formed. Because the alliances built by Cultural Studies practitioners in the U.S. and the global north are deeply shaped by the global south/Third World perspectives, the series will also be open to contributions from scholars and practitioners in and outside of the U.S., including those who may offer a transnational perspective on practicing Cultural Studies.

Editorial Collective

  • Walter Benn Michaels, University of Illinois, USA
  • Sarah Brouillette, Carleton University, Canada
  • Iain Chambers, The University of Naples “L’Orientale,” Italy
  • Douglas Kellner, UCLA, USA
  • Fredric Jameson, Duke University, USA
  • Ranjani Mazumdar, Jawaharlal Nehru University, Delhi, India
  • Angela McRobbie, Goldsmiths College, University of London, UK
  • Toby Miller, University of California—Riverside, USA
  • Mathias Nilges, St. Francis Xavier University, USA
  • Adolph L. Reed, University of Pennsylvania
  • Paul Smith, George Mason University, USA
  • Carol Stabile, University of Oregon, USA 
  • Imre Szeman, University of Alberta, Canada
  • Slavoj Žižek, University of Ljubljana, Slovenia

Editorial Advisory Board:

  • Wail Ismail A. Barry, Ain Shams University, Egypt
  • Barbara Foley, Rutgers University, USA
  • Ann Gunkel, Columbia College Chicago, USA
  • Don Hedrick, Kansas State University, USA
  • Darko Suvin, McGill University, Canada
  • Tiziana Terranova, The University of Naples “L’Orientale,” Italy 

The series will be published by Rowman & Littlefield International.  More information on the series can be found on our website here: http://www.rowmaninternational.com/series/cultural-studies-and-marxism.

Authors and Editors interested in writing or editing future books in the series should contact series editor, Jaafar Aksikas at BOTH Jaksikas@colum.edu AND Jaksikas@gmail.com 

To submit a proposal, please download the proposal form here: http://www.rowmaninternational.com/working-with-authors/submitting-a-proposal and send it to the series editor Jaafar Aksikas at BOTH Jaksikas@colum.edu AND Jaksikas@gmail.com 

CFP: Rosa Luxemburg and the Contemporary: Imperialism, Neoliberalism, Revolution

Call For Papers
Rosa Luxemburg and the Contemporary: Imperialism, Neoliberalism, Revolution

This issue of New Formations will propose a rethinking of the legacy of revolutionary socialist Rosa Luxemburg in the twenty-first century. In particular, essays included in the issue will draw on Luxemburg’s writings in order to address pressing issues of the contemporary world. At a time when neoliberal policies strengthen the smooth running of imperialist dispossession and continue to break the oppressed classes through new forms of precariat, debt, marginalisation, militarism and impoverishment, Luxemburg’s inheritance seems to acquire an unexpected poignancy. Luxemburg’s uncompromising commitment to socialism as only alternative to the violence of capitalism can inspire engaged movements fighting social justice in many contexts of the globe. In particular, the issue will focus on Luxemburg’s reflections on imperialism as the forcing of trade relations with non-capitalist surroundings as antidote to the ‘standstill of accumulation’ inherent to the unfolding of capitalism’s history.

Theories of imperialism through the twentieth and twenty-first centuries have contended with Luxemburg’s proposition by emphasising its limitations, errors and blind-spots. Yet, do Luxemburg’s theories on imperialism retain any meaning or validity in a postcolonial era? Can Luxemburg’s legacy help redefine the struggle against contemporary forms of neoliberalism, imperialism and accumulation? Can a debate on Luxemburg shed light on the meaning of the postcolonial as historical category and its political and social implications? Can Luxemburg’s thought help to redefine the meaning of social engagement today? The twenty-first century seems to confirm Rosa Luxemburg’s prediction that capitalism would be incapable of becoming universal without damaging the environments, societies and forms of life that are necessary for its reproduction. Contemporary wars, ecological crises, social unrest and the violence of neoliberal economy testify to the paradox that Luxemburg examined in her work: the full domination of capitalism on the planet would correspond to a scenario verging on total destruction and hence the breakdown of capitalism itself. According to Rosa Luxemburg, this ‘barbaric’ aspect of capitalism requires the re-opening of history through active revolutionary intervention.

Confirmed contributors

  • Stephen Morton
  • Paul LeBlanc
  • Peter Hudis
  • Helen Scott 
  • Rory Castle
  • Filippo Menozzi
  • Kanishka Chowdhury

We welcome contributions from all disciplines. Final essays will be expected to be 7,000-9,000 words in length. For more information about New Formations see http://www.newformations.co.uk

Deadline for abstracts 30 September 2015
Contributors will be told if their abstracts have been accepted by October 30th 2015
Deadline for full essays: May Day 2016