Putative Purities - Transcultural Dimensions of Master Narratives in Religion

Master narratives provide collectivities with a coherent vision of their history and a sense of homogeneity. They are continually reiterated and stabilized constructions which tend to mask particularity and bias behind universalized representations of objective truth. Especially in postmodern and postcolonial critique, master narratives have been problematized in view of their homogenizing as well as exclusionary potential.

But beyond such critique, master narratives also offer a fruitful avenue to investigate dynamics involved in, and issuing from, intense cultural contact, and the possibilities of representing, performing and materializing cultural alterity in their framework. With a view towards transcultural dimensions involved in establishing, supporting and subverting master narratives, this conference places a special focus on religion: on narratives which support, challenge or displace religious identities, on their own or possibly also in synergy with other forms of collective identity (culture, race, nation).

Contact:
Prof. Dr. Birgit Kellner
Exzellenzcluster “Asien und Europa”
Universität Heidelberg
Voßstraße 4
69115 Heidelberg

Tel.: 06221 54 4301

E-Mail: kellner@asia-europe.uni-heidelberg.de