New Books by BC Faculty Event Series - Spring '24 - Ethyle R. Wolfe Institute for the Humanities 2023-24 - Brooklyn College Library LibGuides Home at Brooklyn College Library

New Books by Brooklyn College Faculty - Spring '24

Medieval Philosophy: A Contemporary Introduction by Andrew W. Arlig
Publication Date: 2023
This book presents a new, contemporary introduction to medieval philosophy as it was practiced in all its variety in Western Europe and the Near East. It assumes only a minimal familiarity with philosophy, the sort that an undergraduate introduction to philosophy might provide, and it is arranged topically around questions and themes that will appeal to a contemporary audience. In addition to some of the perennial questions posed by philosophers, such as "Can we know anything, and if so, what?", "What is the fundamental nature of reality?", and "What does human flourishing consist in?", this volume looks at what medieval thinkers had to say, for instance, about our obligations towards animals and the environment, freedom of speech, and how best to organize ourselves politically. The book examines certain aspects of the thought of several well-known medieval figures, but it also introduces students to many important, yet underappreciated figures and traditions. It includes guidance for how to read medieval texts, provokes reflection through a series of study questions at the end of each chapter, and gives pointers for where interested readers can continue their exploration of medieval philosophy and medieval thought more generally. Key Features Covers the contributions of women to medieval philosophy, providing students with a fuller understanding of who did philosophy during the Middle Ages Includes a focus on certain topics that are usually ignored, such as animal rights, love, and political philosophy, providing students with a fuller range of interests that medieval philosophers had Gives space to non-Aristotelian forms of medieval thought Includes useful features for student readers like study questions and suggestions for further reading in each chapter
Meditation and Prayer in the Eleventh- and Twelfth-Century Monastery by Lauren Mancia
Publication Date: 2023
This book explores the dimensions of medieval monastic meditation, prayer, and contemplation in the heyday of Benedictine and Cistercian spiritual writing, the eleventh and twelfth centuries. Mancia aims to answer the following questions: What did extra-liturgical prayer and meditation look like for medieval monks and nuns in western medieval Europe? When, where, and how was it practised? Was there a set way to engage with monastic meditation, or were there a variety of medieval monastic meditative experiences in the eleventh and twelfth centuries? What did monks and nuns perceive as the limitations of monastic prayer and meditation, and how did they understand their own imperfections and failures to perform "perfect" devotion? What extra-textual tools--art, manuscripts, diagrams, spaces--did monks and nuns rely upon to stimulate their practices of meditation? What does monastic meditation reveal about the emotional lives of Benedictine and Cistercian monks and nuns in the high Middle Ages? And, finally, what does the monastic struggle to pursue a prayerful Christian life have to teach the secular world of the twenty-first century?
Fathers in a Motherland: Imagining Fatherhood in Colonial India by Swapna M. Banerjee
ISBN: 9789391050245
Publication Date: 2022
This monograph breaks new ground by weaving stories of fathers and children into the history of gender, family and nation in colonial India. Focusing on the reformist Bengali Hindu and Brahmo communities, the author contends that fatherhood assumed new meaning and significance in late nineteenth and early twentieth-century India. During this time of social and political change, fathers extended their roles beyond breadwinning to take an active part in rearing their children. Utilizing pedagogic literature, articles in scientific journals, autobiographies, correspondence, and published essays, Fathers in a Motherland documents the different ways the authority and power of the father was invoked and constituted both metaphorically and in everyday experiences. Exploring specific moments when educated men--as biological fathers, literary activists, and educators--assumed guardianship and became crucial agents of change, Banerjee interrogates the connections between fatherhood and masculinity. The last chapter of the book moves beyond Bengal and draws on the lives of Mohandas K. Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru to provide a broader salience to its argument. Reclaiming two missing links in Indian history-fathers and children-the book argues that biological and imaginary "fathers" assumed the moral guardianship of an incipient nation and rested their hopes and dreams on the future generation.
Advocacy and Archaeology: Urban Intersections by Diane F. George and Kelly Britt (Editors)
Publication Date: 2023
Archaeologists have a history of being prime agents of change, particularly in advocating for protection and preservation of historical resources. As more social issues intersect with archaeology and historical sites, we see archaeologists and others continuing to advocate for not only historic resources, but for the larger social justice issues that threaten the communities in which these resources reside. Inspired by the idea of revolution and excitement about the ways archaeology is being used in social justice arenas, this volume seeks to visualize archaeology as part of a movement by redefining what archaeology is and does for the greater good.
Abortion Beyond the Law by Naomi Braine
Publication Date: 2023
How feminists across Latin America, Africa, and Europe are making self-managed abortion available to all and the strong transnational feminist movement they have built along the way. Drawing on years of research with activists around the world, sociologist Naomi Braine describes the strategies, politics, and tactics of direct action feminists bringing abortion pills, information, and support to people seeking to end unwanted pregnancies. From combatting the legal strictures of Bolsonaro's Brazil, to navigating the NGO-dominated landscape of Kenya and Nigeria, feminist activists are making safe, accessible abortion care available against the odds. Even more important, these women are building a robust transnational feminist network. Tactics developed in the Global South - hotlines, practices of accompaniment and peer-to-peer care, and scientific information - are now being shared with activists in Europe and North America, building a new model for international feminist solidarity.
Disruptive Engagement: An Organizer's Guide to Building Community Power for Justice in Land Use and Housing in New York City by Naomi Schiller and Vanessa Thill
Call Number: HD7304.N5 D57 2023
Publication Date: 2023
Disruptive Engagement: An Organizer’s Guide to Building Community Power for Justice in Land Use and Housing in New York City is a guide by organizers for organizers. Land and housing are foundational to our ability to live and thrive. When we attempt to shape what gets built and sustained in New York City neighborhoods, we face a confusing system that instructs individuals to attend hearings, submit written comments, and testify in front of neighbors and officials. Disruptive Engagement is a handbook that draws on the knowledge of organizers from across New York City about how to disrupt the official community engagement apparatus in the most productive ways possible towards the goal of building justice in land use and housing. With specific examples from New York City neighborhoods, this guide provides practical advice for how to maneuver official public hearings, build deliberate alliances, pursue legal challenges, upset the land-use review procedure, launch effective petition drives, and resist business as usual. We explore the challenge of trying to win gains within the existing system while at the same time working towards radical rupture with dominant logics.

Events in the New Books by Brooklyn College Faculty Series - Spring '24

Why Medieval Thinkers Are Relevant to 2024
A conversation with Andrew Arlig and Lauren Mancia, moderated by Nicola Masciandaro
Thursday February 29, 2024
6:00 PM to 7:15 PM
Online

Zoom pre-registration required: https://brooklyn-cuny-edu.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZUvcemvqTMtG9zpQZck6SK5UEZDelnXX7Zk

What were the perennial questions posed by medieval thinkers, and how are they still important to our world in 2024? Join us as we celebrate the publication of Philosophy Professor Andrew Arlig's Medieval Philosophy: A Contemporary Introduction (Routledge, 2023) and History Professor Lauren Mancia’s Meditation and Prayer in the Eleventh- and Twelfth-Century Monastery: Struggling Towards God (ARC Humanities Press, 2023). English Professor Nicola Masciandaro will join them to discuss medieval ideas about the world and the human place within it and explain why studying 1,000-year-old ideas is still relevant to our world today.

Abortion Beyond the Law
a conversation with Naomi Braine, Sybil Nkeiruka Nmezi, and Caitlin Gerdts
Wednesday March 6, 2024
1:00 to 2:00 PM
227 Ingersoll Hall Extension, Brooklyn College Women’s Center
and Online

Zoom pre-registration required: https://brooklyn-cuny-edu.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZ0pcOitqTwsHtLtW0pStlfPAXJrzAMJ9VhQ Q

Join us to celebrate the recent publication of Abortion Beyond the Law by Naomi Braine, Professor of Sociology at Brooklyn College, and learn about the transnational feminist movement for self-managed medication abortion. The book came out of 6 years of research, including interviews with 70 activists across 4 continents, to explore the strategies feminists have developed to enable people facing unwanted pregnancies to safely have an abortion regardless of the law. Professor Braine will discuss her research and the book, and panelists will bring the conversation forward to discuss the work they are involved in today.

The Future of New York City: Who Decides?
a conversation on community organizing
Monday March 18, 2024
6:00 pm
Online

Zoom pre-registration required: https://brooklyn-cuny-edu.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZUrd-Corj4oEtJejmJmSbNUeGM-GmB1uviD

Please join us for a celebration of Anthropology Professor Naomi Schiller’s recent co-authored book, Disruptive Engagement: An Organizer's Guide to Building Community Power for Justice in Land Use and Housing in New York City. The event will explore the question: what role can people play in shaping the future of their neighborhood and the broader city? Speakers will explore how community organizers attempt to navigate New York City’s complex official decision-making processes to fight for housing and to build healthy and sustainable communities. We’ll address how community organizers have responded to Mayor Eric Adams’ vision for a “City of Yes” and what possibilities Community Land Trusts offer for people to steward land on behalf of local communities. Panelists will build on the lessons advanced in their collectively produced handbook.

Affective Masculinities: From Colonial Fathers to Bachelor Banisters in India and England (19th and 20th Centuries)
Thursday, April 18
4:15–5:55 p.m.
Woody Tanger Auditorium, Brooklyn College Library

Celebrate History Professor Swapna M. Banerjee’s latest book, Fathers in the Motherland: Imagining Fatherhood in Colonial India (Oxford University Press, 2022). Banerjee will be joined by NYU History Professor Ren Pepitone. The book contends that during a period of social and political change in late 19th and early 20th-century colonial India, fathers extended their roles beyond breadwinning to take an active part in rearing their children. Exploring specific moments when educated men—as biological fathers, literary activists, and educators—assumed guardianship and became crucial agents of change, Banerjee interrogates the connections between fatherhood and masculinity. The last chapter of the book draws on the lives of Mohandas K. Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru to provide a broader salience to its argument. Reclaiming two missing links in Indian history, the book argues that biological and imaginary “fathers” assumed the moral guardianship of an incipient nation and rested their hopes and dreams on the future generation.

Advocacy and Archaeology: Present Thoughts
Wednesday May 8, 2024
6:00 PM
Online

Zoom pre-registration required: https://brooklyn-cuny-edu.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZ0lceyvrjouHdOlw14nCe5G_2PTwZ5GSg5x

Archaeologists have a history of being agents of change, particularly in advocating for the protection and preservation of historical resources. The passage of many historic preservation laws and the development of the field of Cultural Resources Management in the mid-20th century enabled urban archaeological groups, individual archaeologists, and those working with historic sites to be diligent advocates for heritage as the fast-paced nature of urbanization threatened historical resources and a sense of place. Today as more social issues, such as climate change, inequality, neoliberal development, and contestation of historical memory, intersect with archaeology and historical sites, archaeologists and others continue to advocate not only for historic resources but also for the larger social justice questions (or challenges?) that threaten the communities in which these resources reside. Join us for a celebration of Anthropology Prof. Kelly Britt’s recently published co-edited volume Advocacy and Archaeology: Urban Intersections. The book is based around the theme of activism in urban settings, drawing on the endeavors of those working in these settings and their advocacy efforts on a variety of social justice and historic preservation projects. This event will bring the conversations highlighted in this volume into the present moment as archaeologists face ongoing and increasing challenges.

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Ethyle R. Wolfe Institute for the Humanities 2023-24: New Books by BC Faculty Event Series - Spring '24

New Books by Brooklyn College Faculty - Spring '24

Events in the New Books by Brooklyn College Faculty Series - Spring '24