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TORCH | The Oxford Research Centre in the Humanities

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The University of Oxford is home to an impressive range and depth of research activities in the Humanities. TORCH | The Oxford Research Centre in the Humanities is a major new initiative that seeks to build on this heritage and to stimulate and support research that transcends disciplinary and institutional boundaries. Here we feature some of the networks and programmes, as well as recordings of events, and offer insights into the research that they make possible.

# Episode Title Description People Date
1 Photography and Tibet Author, Clare Harris, talks about her book on photography in Tibet - a place that has for centuries been a source of fascination for outsiders and a captivating yet troublesome subject for photographers. Clare Harris, Thupten Kelsang, Elizabeth Edwards, Geraldine Johnson 05 Apr 2018
2 A Celebration of the Centenary of the Birth of Olive Gibbs 100 years since the Representation of the People Act, the act which gave women the vote. Susanna Pressel, Liz Woolley, Bruce Kent, Simon Gibbs 26 Feb 2018
3 Ethnicised Religion and Sacralised Ethnicity in the Past and the Present An expert panel discusses the phenomenon of ethnicisation of religious identifications focussing especially on the nexus of religious, ethnic and national identifications in colonial, anti-colonial and postcolonial settings from Ireland to South Asia. Elisabeth Bolorinos Allard, Faisal Devji, Peter Leary, Ilya Afanasyev 22 Feb 2018
4 Valuing Women With Disabilities Valuing Women With Disabilities: Infantilised, Medicalised, Pauperised? Marie Tidball, Helen Brookman, Julie Jaye Charles 21 Feb 2018
5 James Joyce and the Phenomenology of Film Book at Lunchtime, James Joyce and the Phenomenology of Film Katherine Morris, Ulrika Maude, Jeri Johnson, Cleo Hanaway-Oakley 16 Feb 2018
6 A History of Algeria James McDougall presents an expansive new account of the modern history of Africa's largest country James McDougal, Eugene Rogan, Laleh Khalili, Robert Gildea 25 Jan 2018
7 Imagining the Divine: Art and the Rise of World Religions Mary Beard and Neil MacGregor in conversation undefined 24 Jan 2018
8 Becoming / Unbecoming With comics artist Una Una 18 Dec 2017
9 Unlocking the Church Book at Lunchtime, Unlocking the Church William Whyte, Dan Hicks, Julia Smith, Mark Chapman 11 Dec 2017
10 Late Victorian into Modern Book at Lunchtime, Late Victorian into Modern Laura Marcus, Kirsten Shepherd-Barr, Michael Bentley, Charlotte Jones 08 Dec 2017
11 Autonomy, Community, Destiny: Re-Imagining Disability The second seminar in the Disability and Curriculum Diversity series at TORCH Elizabeth Frood, Dom Hyams, Marie Tidball 07 Dec 2017
12 Work, Time and Stress: Historical and Contemporary Perspectives Stress & overwork in both education and professional life in the Victorian era and the 'dynamic' nature of disability and the impact of the stresses of modern life has. Sally Shuttleworth, Marie Tidball 07 Dec 2017
13 Me and My Beliefs: Challenges of Identity and Society Me and My Beliefs: Challenges of Identity and Society held on 28 November 2017 Libby Lane, Jas' Elsner, Shaista Aziz, Elleke Boehmer 06 Dec 2017
14 Imagining the Divine: Art and the Rise of World Religions Book at Lunchtime held on 8th November 2017. Gervase Rosser, Georgi Parpulov, Stefanie Lenk, Kate Cooper 27 Nov 2017
15 Representing the Dead Book at Lunchtime event Helen Swift, jessica Goodman, Philip Bullock, Neil Kenny 26 Oct 2017
16 Hidden Beneath the Surface: Untold Tales of Neurodivergence and Mental Difference in Oxford World Mental Health Day 2017 Dan Holloway, Miranda Reilly, Sonia Boue, Marie Tidball 18 Oct 2017
17 Unflattening With Nick Sousanis Nick Sousanis, Dominic Davies, Segolene Tarte 05 Sep 2017
18 Disaster Drawn: Comics and Picturing Violence Keynote lecture by Hilary Chute as part of the Documenting Trauma conference. Hilary Chute 05 Sep 2017
19 Thinking the Beyond of Crisis Professor Simon Glendinnning (London School of Economics) delivered the keynote address on 'Thinking the Beyond of Crisis' at the TORCH Crisis, Extremes, and Apocalypse event 'Rethinking Crisis'. Simon Glendinning 18 Jul 2017
20 Creative Commons Exploring Sicilian Epigraphy Sicilian schools study and research epigraphy in their museums. Kirsten Shepherd-Barr, Andrew Fairweather-Tall 23 Jun 2017
21 Creative Commons Italian Stories in Britain A project about talking to Italian communities in Britain and finding out what stories there are. Kirsten Shepherd-Barr, Matthew Reza 23 Jun 2017
22 Creative Commons Unsilencing the library: An exhibition at Compton Verney Research into how books make us feel. Kirsten Shepherd-Barr, Sophie Ratcliffe, Steven Parissien 23 Jun 2017
23 Creative Commons Recreating the music of an ancient Greek chorus: Euripides Orestes Research into ancient music. Kirsten Shepherd-Barr, Armand O Angour 23 Jun 2017
24 Creative Commons Storming Utopia The director from the Pegasus theatre in Oxford, talks about his upcoming theatre piece. Kirsten Shepherd-Barr, Wes Williams 23 Jun 2017
25 Creative Commons Literature and Silence Research into multiple Quaker congregations. Kirsten Shepherd-Barr, Kate McLoughlin 23 Jun 2017
26 Creative Commons Transforming The Operatic Voice Looking at the relationships between philosophy and the creative practice of music. Kirsten Shepherd-Barr, Toby Young 23 Jun 2017
27 How the Mouse Lost its Tail, Or, Lamarck's Dangerous Idea Speaker: Jessica Riskin (University of Stanford) Jessica Riskin 19 Jun 2017
28 Progress, Providence, Eschaton: Löwith, Blumenberg, and After Speaker: Jean-Claude Monond (ENS) Jean-Claude Monond 19 Jun 2017
29 Rescue in the Face of Danger: Benjamin, Goethe, Sebald Speaker: Carolin Duttlinger (University of Oxford) Carolin Duttlinger 19 Jun 2017
30 The Modern Epimetheus. Carl Schmitt's Marian Katechontism Speaker: Hjalmar Falk (Oxford/Gothenburg) Hjalmar Falk 19 Jun 2017
31 Ernst Kantorowicz and the Politics of Political Theology Speaker: Martin Ruehl (University of Cambridge) Martin Ruehl 19 Jun 2017
32 On Real and Imagined Catastrophes: Gershom Scholem's Sabbatinism Speaker: Amir Engel (Hebrew University) Amir Engel 19 Jun 2017
33 Surrealism’s Political-Theological Afterlife: Benjamin—Blumenberg—Taubes Speaker: Julia Ng (Goldsmith's) Julia Ng 19 Jun 2017
34 Creative Commons Humanities Knowledge Exchange Showcase Knowledge Exchange is the mutually beneficial sharing of ideas, data, experience, and expertise, and involves collaboration between researchers and external organisations or the public. Kirsten Shepherd-Barr, Toby Young, Kate McLoughlin 19 Jun 2017
35 Between Historiography and Literature: "Gershom Sholem's Intellectual Biography" Speaker: Amir Engel (Hebrew University) Amir Engel 19 Jun 2017
36 Performance of 'Night Dance (Fantasy)' Musicians Dan Hulme and Nick Fowler perform Night Dance (Fantasy) at a recent Live Friday event, held at the Ashmolean Museum on March 3rd 2017. Dan Hulme, Nick Fowler 13 Jun 2017
37 Britain's History and Memory of Transatlantic Slavery Book at Lunchtime seminar on Britain's History and Memory of Transatlantic Slavery, edited and written by Ryan Hanley (Fellow in History, University of Oxford). Bob Harris, Ryan Hanley, Padraic Scanlan, Sebabatso Manoeli 13 Jun 2017
38 Everything in Everything: Anaxagoras's Metaphysics Book at Lunchtime discussion Anna Marmodoro, Elleke Boehmer, Naoya Iwata, Simona Aimar 06 Jun 2017
39 Volcanoes: Natural Disaster Narratives and the Environment in Caribbean Literature A panel discussion Elleke Boehmer, Imaobong Umoren, Richard Scholar, Anne Castro 05 Jun 2017
40 Bruno Latour's Anti-sacrificial Politics Part of the Sacrifice Revisited event Martin Crowley 22 May 2017
41 Meanings of ‘Sacrifice’ in Brexit Mythology Part of the Sacrifice Revisited event Kalypso Nicolaidis 22 May 2017
42 Gandhi, Sacrifice and the Ambiguities of Non-Violence Part of the Sacrifice Revisited event Faisal Devji 22 May 2017
43 Consequentialist Extremism: Present Sacrifices for Future Dreams in the Justification of Violence Part of the Sacrifice Revisited event Jonathan Leader Maynard 22 May 2017
44 On Violence, Gender, and Sacrifice: Old Stories and New Reflections Part of the Sacrifice Revisited event Kimberley Hutchings 22 May 2017
45 A Genre in Crisis: The Novel in 1940s France Professor Ann Jefferson discusses the French novel. Ann Jefferson 17 May 2017
46 InHabit: People, Places and Possessions Book at Lunchtime Seminar held on May 3rd 2017. Antony Buxton, Linda Hulin, Jane Anderson, Cathy Oakes 10 May 2017
47 Terminus or Renovation? Francis Bacon and crisis in early modern knowledge The TORCH Crisis, Extremes, and Apocalypse network hosted a talk on 'Terminus or Renovation? Francis Bacon and Crisis in Early Modern Knowledge' with Dr Richard Serjeantson (University of Cambridge) Richard Serjeantson 10 May 2017
48 Ernst Kantorowicz on Methods and Postage Stamps The TORCH Crisis, Extremes, and Apocalypse network hosted a talk on ''Ernst Kantorowicz on Methods and Postage Stamps' given by Professor Robert Lerner (Northwestern) Robert Lerner 10 May 2017
49 The Rise of Endless War The TORCH Crisis, Extremes, and Apocalypse network hosted a talk on 'The Rise of Endless War' with Professor Samuel Moyn (Harvard University). samuel moyn 10 May 2017
50 Robespierre and the Politicians' Terror The TORCH Crisis, Extremes, and Apocalypse network hosted a talk on 'Robespierre and the Politicians’ Terror' with Marisa Linton (Kingston University). Marisa Linton 10 May 2017
51 Dystopia Today The TORCH Crisis, Extremes, and Apocalyse network have hosted an event on 'Dystopia Today' with Greg Claeys (Royal Holloway, University of London). Greg Claeys 10 May 2017
52 Germs Revisited On Thursday 16 March 2017, Dr Emilie Taylor-Brown gave a talk with Dr Jamie Lorimer (School of Geography and the Environment) and Dr Nicola Fawcett (Medical Sciences Division) on the subject of Germs Revisited. Emilie Taylor-Brown, Jamie Lorimer, Nicola Fawcett, Kirsten Shepherd-Barr 25 Apr 2017
53 Creative Commons Whither Death? Helen Swift and Jessica Goodman discuss the one day conference 'Whither Death?' Helen Swift, jessica Goodman 28 Mar 2017
54 Creative Commons Miles Hewstone - What Does Diversity Mean to Me? Opening event in TORCH Headline Series exploring 'Humanities & Identities' Miles Hewstone 28 Mar 2017
55 Creative Commons Maria Misra - What Does Diversity Mean to Me? Opening event in TORCH Headline Series exploring 'Humanities & Identities' Maria Misra 28 Mar 2017
56 Creative Commons Marvin Rees - What Does Diversity Mean to Me? Opening event in TORCH Headline Series exploring 'Humanities & Identities' Marvin Rees 28 Mar 2017
57 Creative Commons Deborah Cameron - What Does Diversity Mean to Me? Opening event in TORCH Headline Series exploring 'Humanities & Identities Deborah Cameron 28 Mar 2017
58 Creative Commons Ellah Wakatama Allfrey - What Does Diversity Mean to Me? Opening event in TORCH Headline Series exploring 'Humanities & Identities' Ellah Wakatama Allfrey 28 Mar 2017
59 Creative Commons Jay Stewart - What Does Diversity Mean to Me? Opening event in TORCH Headline Series exploring 'Humanities & Identities' Jay Stewart 28 Mar 2017
60 Politics and Public Space in Contemporary Argentine Poetry Book at Lunchtime event. Ben Bollig, Bart van Es, Leigh A Payne, Eduardo Posada-Carbo 21 Mar 2017
61 Exodus, Reckoning, Sacrifice: Three Meanings of Brexit Lecture with Kalypso Nicolaidis (St Antony’s College). Respondent: Anand Menon (King’s College London) Convenors: Timothy Garton Ash and Kalypso Nicolaidis (St Antony’s College). Kalypso Nicolaidis, Anand Menon, Timothy Garton Ash 03 Mar 2017
62 Walter Benjamin Meets the Cosmics Professor Richard Wolin (CUNY) delivers a talk on 'Walter Benjamin Meets the Cosmics' for the TORCH Crisis, Extremes, and Apocalypse network. Richard Wolin 28 Feb 2017
63 Language, Crisis, and Affect The TORCH Crisis, Extremes, and Apocalypse network hosted a talk ‘Language, crisis and affect: Muted emotions in Heinrich von Kleist’s Michael Kohlhaas’ with Dr Tobias Heinrich (University of Oxford). Tobias Heinrich 28 Feb 2017
64 Living Bilingual Professor Elleke Boehmer (Director of TORCH) delivers a talk as part of the Creative Multilingualism and TORCH Bitesize Talks at Linguamania, Ashmolean Museum. Elleke Boehmer 22 Feb 2017
65 Bilingualism and the Internet Scott Hale (Senior Data Scientist) delivers a talk as part of the Creative Multilingualism and TORCH Bitesize Talks at Linguamania, Ashmolean Museum. Scott Hale 22 Feb 2017
66 A Tristan Tile in the Ashmolean Henrike Lähnemann (Professor of Medieval German Literature) delivers a talk as part of the Creative Multilingualism and TORCH Bitesize Talks at Linguamania, Ashmolean Museum. Henrike Lähnemann 21 Feb 2017
67 Do Objects Speak? Wen-chin Ouyang (Professor of Arabic and Comparative Literature at the School of Oriental and African Studies) delivers a talk as part of the Creative Multilingualism and TORCH Bitesize Talks at Lingumania. Wen-Chin Ouyang 21 Feb 2017
68 Musings from Cloud Cuckoo Land Dr Karen Park delivers a Creative Multilingualism and TORCH Bitesize talk as part of Linguamania Karen Park 21 Feb 2017
69 The Spirits of Crossbones Graveyard The book's author Sondra Hausner (Professor of Anthropology, University of Oxford) will explore the issues raised in her book. Sondra Hausner, Bridget Anderson, Diane Watt, Antonia Fitzpatrick 10 Feb 2017
70 Literature and the Public Good Part of the Book at Lunchtime series Rick Rylance, Jane Hiddleston, Timothy Michael, Ankhi Mukherjee 01 Feb 2017
71 #NeverHillary vs #NeverTrump The US Election on Social Media Panel Discussion Philip N Howard, Gemma Joyce, Matthew Lee Anderson, Yin Yin Lu 01 Feb 2017
72 Drawing the Line: Toward an Aesthetic of Transitional Justice This Postcolonial Writing and Theory Seminar is on 'Drawing the Line: Toward an Aesthetic of Transitional Justice' with speaker Carrol Clarkson (University of Amsterdam). Carrol Clarkson 06 Jan 2017
73 FRIGHT Friday - Stretched to Breaking Point Dan Holloway gives a talk for the FRIGHT Friday series of talks, held in the Ashmolean Museum on 25th November 2016. Dan Holloway 12 Dec 2016
74 FRIGHT Friday - Gothic Horror: Medicine and Monsters Dr Andrew Papanikitas gives a talk for the FRIGHT Friday series of talks, held in the Ashmolean Museum on 25th November 2016. Andrew Papanikitas 12 Dec 2016
75 FRIGHT Friday - Fear and Flesh: Gothic Medicine Dr Barry Murname gives a talk for the FRIGHT Friday series of talks, held in the Ashmolean Museum on 25th November 2016. Barry Murname 12 Dec 2016
76 FRIGHT Friday - Fear of Cats and Other Phobias Professor Sally Shuttleworth gives a talk for the FRIGHT Friday series of talks, held in the Ashmolean Museum on 25th November 2016. Sally Shuttleworth 12 Dec 2016
77 FRIGHT Friday - Parenting, Fear, Hope and Salvation Dr Joshua Hordern gives a talk for the FRIGHT Friday series of talks, held in the Ashmolean Museum on 25th November 2016. Joshua Hordern 12 Dec 2016
78 FRIGHT Friday - Embodying Life and Death Professor Cathy Morgan gives a talk for the FRIGHT Friday series of talks, held in the Ashmolean Museum on 25th November 2016. Cathy Morgan 12 Dec 2016
79 Martin Luther - Renegade and Prophet Part of the Book at Lunchtime series Lyndal Roper, Laura Marcus, Simeon Zahl, Jas Elsner 08 Nov 2016
80 Creative Commons Sharing Sacred Spaces in Early Modern Germany With David Lubeke (University of Oregon) David Lubeke 21 Oct 2016
81 What We Cannot Know Part of the TORCH Book at Lunchtime series Marcus du Sautoy, Anita Avramides, Chrystalina Antoniades, Ben Morgan 21 Oct 2016
82 The Prelude Part of the TORCH Book at Lunchtime series James Engell, Fiona Stafford, Emily Knight, Steven Matthews 21 Oct 2016
83 Interview with Neil MacGregor Neil MacGregor talks about the public engagement at the British Museum. Neil MacGregor 12 Oct 2016
84 The Fires of Faith The Babsybanoo, Machionness of Winchester Lecture with Neil MacGregor Neil MacGregor 07 Sep 2016
85 Digital Unwrapping: Homer, Herculaneum, and the Scroll from Ein Gedi With Dirk Obbink (Associate Professor in Papyrology and Greek Literature, Faculty of Classics, University of Oxford) Dirk Obbink 19 Aug 2016
86 Digital Unwrapping: Homer, Herculaneum, and the Scroll from Ein Gedi With Brent Seales (Professor of Computer Science, University of Kentucky) Brent Seales 19 Aug 2016
87 Digital Unwrapping: Homer, Herculaneum, and the Scroll from Ein Gedi With Brent Seales and Dirk Obbink Brent Seales, Dirk Obbink 19 Aug 2016
88 Why We Need the Humanities How has humanities scholarship influenced biomedical research and civil liberties and how can scholars serve the common good? Donald Drakeman, Richard Ekins, Jay Sexton, Helen Small 27 Jul 2016
89 The Prospect of Global History How can global history can be applied instead of advocated? James Belich, Elleke Boehmer, Richard Drayton, Hannah-Louise Clark 27 Jul 2016
90 The Concept of 'Umma' in Early Islam Fred Donner (University of Chicago) addresses the nebulous, often misunderstood concept of 'umma' in early Islam Fred Donner 07 Jul 2016
91 The Role of Religion in Identity Julia Bray (University of Oxford) delivers a keynote lecture on the role of religion in identity Julia Bray 07 Jul 2016
92 Creative Commons Useful Frames and Dead Pasteboard Sarah Hook looks at Victorian photographic card portraits, and charts their appearances in novels and poems from the period. Sarah Hook 07 Jun 2016
93 Creative Commons David Garrick's Wigless Celebrity Ruth Scobie's bite-sized talk on a portrait of David Garrick by Johan Zoffany Ruth Scobie 07 Jun 2016
94 Creative Commons Chasing Butterflies: Capturing the Transience of Childhood Emily Knight talks at the Ashmolean Museum about eighteenth-century portraits of children. Emily Knight 07 Jun 2016
95 Creative Commons The Death Masks of Macbeth Professor Simon Palfrey discusses the deaths and afterlives of Oliver Cromwell and Macbeth Simon Palfrey 07 Jun 2016
96 Creative Commons Andy Warhol's Girls Eleri Watson explores Andy Warhol's relationships with women. Eleri Watson 07 Jun 2016
97 Creative Commons Messages through Ashmolean Portraits Vicky McGuinness's bite-sized talk at Ashmolean LiveFriday: Framed Victoria McGuinness 07 Jun 2016
98 Empire and Identity: Imperial Rule and Peoplehood across Time and Place A round table discussion of empire's role in identity formation across time and place. Miles Larmer, Elisabeth Bolorinos Allard, Bryan Ward-Perkins, Florian Schwarz 25 May 2016
99 How English Became English A Book at Lunchtime discussion looking at the English language and how it is developing with Simon Horobin, Faramerz Dabhoiwala, Martin Wynne, Philip Durkin and Susie Dent. Simon Horobin, Faramerz Dabhoiwala, Martin Wynne, Philip Durkin 06 May 2016
100 Rereading East Germany A Book at Lunchtime discussion tracing the cultural legacy of the GDR with Karen Leeder, Dennis Tate, Sara Jones, Marc Silberman and Tom Smith Karen Leeder, Dennis Tate, Sara Jones, Marc Silberman 05 May 2016