The University of Liverpool has successfully applied to organise two events as part of the UK’s only national festival of humanities, Being Human 2015.
Taking place in November, the University events Being Supernatural and Being Posthuman will form part of an eleven day nationwide programme of big ideas, big debates and engaging activities aimed at all ages.
Being Supernatural, with Professor Sarah Peverley from the University’s Department of English, will feature Liverpool University Players performing Marie De France’s 12th Century Breton Lai, Bisclavret (The Werewolf) at the Walker Art Gallery. The show will pave the way for a talk about what it means to be human, in both the past and the present, by looking at how medieval literature uses fantastic and imaginative realms to consider the human condition.
American Literature Lecturer, Dr Will Slocombe, also from the Department of English, will deliver Being Posthuman, which includes a film screening, discussion, and poster display exploring artificial intelligences and cyborgs, at FACT on Wood Street.
The winning proposals are among 41 events funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) and the British Academy (BA), with additional support from the Wellcome Trust, taking place during the festival between 12 – 22 November 2015.
The aim is to champion the excellence of humanities research being undertaken at the University, bringing together researchers and local communities to participate in contemporary thinking around the humanities.
Professor Dinah Birch, the University’s Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Research and Knowledge said: “The University is delighted to participate in the excitement of Being Human, the national festival of the humanities.
“Both events will explore challenging new perspectives on our human identities, and I’d like to thank the AHRC for supporting the initiative of our School of the Arts in developing these two imaginative events.”
During the inaugural festival in 2014 over 60 universities and cultural organisations organised over 160 free events sharing the best and most challenging thinking in the humanities with audiences across the country. Extending beyond face-to-face interactions in the UK, the festival crossed borders on the web, reaching more than 2.2 million across Twitter and website visitors from around the globe. The 2015 festival programme promises to be exciting, entertaining and thought-provoking, with something for everyone in our diverse communities.
The two University of Liverpool events have been made possible by a grant from the festival organisers, the School of Advanced Study, University of London.
To find out more about Being Human 2015, please visit http://beinghumanfestival.org/
