For several years, the new concept of space that emerged between the end of the 15^th and during the 16^th century has been the object of study by several disciplines. Besides well-known works by historians of science, contributions by epistemologists and historians of geography analysed the genesis of both the concept of universal Earth – i.e. the representation and conception of the word as a unity – and new perspectives on art and science.

Argument

For several years, the new concept of space that emerged between the end of the 15^th and during the 16^th century has been the object of study by several disciplines. Besides well-known works by historians of science, contributions by epistemologists and historians of geography analysed the genesis of both the concept of universal Earth – i.e. the representation and conception of the word as a unity – and new perspectives on art and science.

Far from being a merely quantitative development, the discovery of new territories led to a resemantization of space, transforming the way territory was described, mapped and conceptualised. For example, as affirmed by several authors, 16^th-century maps are qualitatively different from previous ones. They do not simply display and measure territory, but also provide a renovated vision of the world conditioned by the social and political framework of contemporary society. This shift in modern cartography attests one of the main consequences of the new resemantization of space: the territorialisation of power/politicization of space.

This resemantization of space also underpins the approach of European thinkers to the ‘newly discovered’ populations, which planted the seeds of what will become modern anthropology and laid down the indispensable premises for the forthcoming rise of capitalism.

In conclusion, despite the specificity of each discipline, the pervasive renovation of 16^th-century episteme constructed scientifically a new concept of earth, conceived as “the universal space of human existence”.

Main topics

We encourage the submission of innovative papers exploring, yet not necessarily limited to, the following topics during the early modern periods:

• The emergence of the new globalized spatiality in philosophy, art, literature and other sciences;
• The representation of otherness (newly discovered populations, the ottoman world, Asian cultures, etc.);
• The emerging of capitalist system and its social and gender implications (pirates, witches, tradeswomen and the attempts to construct other social forms);
• Counter-Reformation Church and history of the Missions;
• The attempts to theorize political forms of governance of the new global space.

Submission guidelines

Please send proposals

by 5 August 2021

to Alberto FABRIS (alberto.fabris@jhu.edu). Your proposal should include a title, 150-word abstract, and one-paragraph biographical CV. We are working on the possibility to publish the contributions in a thematic issue of a peer-reviewed journal.

Organisateur du panel

• Alberto Fabris, PhD – Johns Hopkins University

General Instructions

• No names or titles should be included in the abstract text. Names will be automatically hidden during the abstract review process and will be automatically inserted and properly formatted upon publication.
• Presenting authors will be automatically informed of the unique ID numbers and passwords assigned to their abstracts. Abstracts may be viewed and modified at any time between submission and the deadline, using the assigned ID# and password.
• An individual may submit one paper for consideration. That one paper may be an individual paper proposal or part of an organized panel. Individuals who submit more than one paper proposal (or the same paper multiple times) will be asked to withdraw all but one of them before the submissions are reviewed.
• For more information related to eligibility and submission quotas, please click here.