European Studies Beyond Eurocentrism

       The European Studies Project (ESP) is animated by an unconventional vision of "European Studies" as part of a cross-disciplinary conversation that also includes scholars centered in other world areas. Our vision of Europe is expansive: extending from Western Europe across the Mediterranean to the far reaches of Siberia, it encompasses the rich and highly complex history of cultural, economic, and poltical interactions from the ancient to the contemporary post-colonial world, and it looks beyond the continent's borders to explore patterns of transnational interaction between European and non-European cultures in Asia, Africa, Latin America, and the Caribbean. Thus while the contemporary socio-political transformations associated with the European Union provide an important horizon for our conversations, ESP has consistently transcended the geographical boundaries of Europe to examine the complex relations between European and non-European cultures, nations, and religious practices both today and in the past.

Everyone is welcome to join us in scholarly conversation based on a genuine willingness to share ideas across the usual divides. The idea is simple: to read and engage critically with one another's work. But the practice can be transformational.

Please come--and stay for dinner!